The Queen's Debacle
by BigRedCorporate
Summary: The Authority. A stable created for absolute control over those of the WWE. Led by the 'Power Couple', Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. Members come and go, but the main goal is to protect their handpicked prize possession, Seth Rollins. Tensions arise between members, leading to a major twist not even the WWE Universe saw coming.
1. Chapter 1

"We have one mission, and one mission only, to protect Seth Rollins…" The distinct voice of Hunter droned on as he addressed the small group that was the Authority.

Staring down those of Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury, Big Show, Kane, Seth Rollins and even wife, Stephanie McMahon, he made sure to remind them every meeting how important of an asset Seth was. How important was Rollins to each member he was addressing? He didn't know, but he _did_ know that his golden boy had to be protected, whether the others liked him or not. His eyes met Kane's, lingering longer than needed. He knew the older man didn't enjoy the decision to bring Seth in, let alone choose him to be the future, but such is life. He knew Kane wouldn't go too far out of his way to protect Seth, but tonight was a _priority._ Hunter needed every single person on the top of his or her game, especially the Director of Operations.

Glancing around the small back room used for an office, Kane's eyes caught those of Stephanie's. She didn't look too interested in what her husband was talking about and quite frankly neither did he. It was the same speech every time. He swore that Hunter favorited Seth more than the well being of everyone else in the Authority. That included his wife. How many times had he had to be the real man and step in to protect Stephanie rather than Seth? How many times had he watched his friend worry more about a man fully capable of defending himself run to his aid rather than the mere thought that his wife might get hurt? Breaking eye contact, Kane chose to look at his shoes instead. He obviously knew Hunter loved her, but whether people saw it or not, even a monster like himself realized who _should_ be a top priority to protect. Although… he figured Stephanie could handle herself if need be. He thanked the gods that he was never on the receiving end of one of her 'billion dollar slaps' she dished out to whomever was in her way. The worst he had dealt with was a brutal tongue lashing that made him don the mask. Whether that was best for business or not, it was over with. He was glad to be wearing the suit again, and as Hunter's closing words echoed throughout the small space, he could only hope tonight would go as planned.


	2. Chapter 2

Watching from the sidelines, Kane grew antsy as Seth was being decimated by Dean Ambrose. He only hoped his pathetic excuse as a brother Roman wouldn't show his face. He knew if Roman appeared, it would be utter bedlam. He could say that the numbers game was on the Authority's side, it was two men against six. They had no chance…

Hunter sat in his chair alongside Stephanie. The past few weeks they had not gotten along very well, she had bitched and challenged every single one of his orders for the Authority. Why? The hell if he knew, but he wanted it to end. He didn't like arguing with her but he knew what was best for business. He knew that the longevity and legacy of Seth Rollins would pay off in the end, and if arguing with Stephanie happened, then so be it. Besides, it was only a small price to pay if everything worked out in the end. Looking at her, he gave her a nod which she didn't return. Sighing, he rubbed a hand over his face and turned his attention back to the match.

Slapping his hands on the ring apron, Kane growled out at the referee as Ambrose pinned Seth with a roll up. He saw out of the corner of his eye Seth coming to his senses and realizing that he had just lost in front of the entire Authority. Getting into the ring, he stepped up into the ref's face as he demanded the match be restarted but he only got a few words out before being pushed back by Hunter. With an exasperated and exaggerated display of anger and annoyance, he finally backed off, settling himself in the corner of the ring while Hunter tended to Seth. He waited, uninterested, as Hunter verbally assaulted Seth for losing the match, but it wasn't until Stephanie stepped into the ring that he was a bit more intrigued.

"Okay, Hunter, he's learned his lesson. Let up a bit." Stephanie spoke out loud enough for both men to hear.

While Hunter usually had to calm her down, they took a role reversal and now she was calming him down. Patting Hunter's chest, she tried to pry him away from the younger two-toned haired man. Her efforts were futile as a rabid Dean Ambrose appeared from out of nowhere with a chair and nailed Seth in the back. The blow caused Seth to bump into Stephanie, who was currently wedged between the two men, to fall down onto the canvas. The fans in the arena collectively cheered as she landed on the canvas, taking the bump a bit harder than what she was used to. Grabbing her shoulder, which took the brunt of the impact, she struggled to sit up. Expecting to see her husband worried that she had gotten injured, she was taken aback by the sight before her. There stood Hunter, Seth, J&J and Big Show all pummeling Ambrose. She watched as Hunter took a step back, ordering Kane to do something she didn't hear. Within seconds she felt his large hands on her arms, helping her up.

Kane's warm breath hit her ear as he spoke, "Are you okay?" Keeping a straight face, she nodded and was helped out of the ring by him before a trainer rushed over to her, taking her to the back.

Sliding into the ring, Kane knew he would catch hell from Hunter for slightly disobeying his orders. He hadn't been ordered to help Stephanie exactly, he was told to check her then help them in the beat down of Ambrose. He couldn't just leave her there. Besides, he still didn't understand why Hunter was acting like he couldn't be bothered to check on his wife… oh, right, because it involved Seth. Anything that involved Seth was number one in Hunter's mind. He was becoming the power hungry, crazed boss that was in it for his own intentions. Nobody else's.

Walking into the backstage area after the end of Raw, Kane saw Hunter sitting with Stephanie, who had a bandage on her shoulder. A small, sad smile reached his lips as he realized that in the ring and on the cameras, it was only an act. Hunter really did care for her, that was, until Seth strolled out and his attention immediately turned to the Golden Boy. Seth had a bandage around his midsection from the match with Dean earlier in the night to which Hunter took full concern over compared to the sympathetic looks he was giving Stephanie a few seconds ago. Frowning, he noticed the look in Stephanie's eyes as Hunter became wrapped up with what ever Seth was rambling on about. Opting to go over and say something, he was stopped by his two little friends, Jamie and Joey.

"Ready to go, boss?" Spoke the rich southern accent of Jamie accompanied by a big smile from Joey.

Nodding, Kane grabbed his bags and the three headed out of the arena, but not without him taking one last look back at the sight of Hunter, Stephanie and Seth.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hunter, I don't understand why-,"

"Stephanie! Enough! You don't do things your way anymore. You signed this contract to do what _I_ tell you. Not what _you_ think is right!"

Shaking her head, Stephanie couldn't believe the words spewing out of her husband's mouth. Since when did she sign up to listen to him and have no say whatsoever? This was not the way she did things around here, and most importantly, this was not the way her own husband was supposed to treat her! She had gone to Hunter to talk to him privately about her plans for Seth's future but he shut her down and claimed that his plans were already in the making and they weren't to be messed up. She didn't even know if he heard her, or was even listening when she blatantly told him she was wary about Seth's skills and the pressure of being the face of WWE. These days, she didn't think he heard much of anything other than what came out of Seth's mouth.

Sighing, she lifted her palms up, officially surrendering for the time being, "Fine, if that's what you want to do, then so be it. But what about me? What about my well being?"

Stephanie knew she could handle anything, she was a tough as nails, strong, independent woman, but she also believed in chivalry, and the fact that a man should always protect his woman. Something that Hunter was displaying less and less of these days.

"What about you? I've seen you defend yourself; you even beat Bella at Summerslam. You shouldn't have to worry about someone always coming to your rescue."

Astounded by his words, Stephanie stayed silent, staring at a man that no longer acted like her husband.

Seeing her expression, Hunter's face immediately fell. He was so stressed about prepping Rollins that he didn't even think twice about what he was saying to his own wife. Walking over to her, he tried to throw an arm around her, but was shocked when she backed away from his advances,

"Look, Steph… I didn't mean that. You know I love you, and will do anything to protect you…"

She rolled her eyes at the same speech he had given her just the other night when she landed on her shoulder. She almost believed him and gave in until Seth walked over and he stopped mid sentence to shift his attention to Seth. Walking towards the office door, she turned once more to her husband, and was about to say something when the phone rang. Stepping through the threshold, she tossed out a, "I'll leave you to your business" before walking away.

Within seconds, Seth Rollins walked into Hunter's office, having overheard their entire conversation, "Whoa, Trips, is everythin' alright?"

Dropping his bag to the floor, he took out the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and slung it over his shoulder, ready for the main event. The young man truly had no idea how much Hunter valued him, and how much it was harming his marriage.

"Yeah, Seth, yeah, everything is fine. Come on, let's go."

Walking down the dark, musty hallway of the arena, Stephanie walked into what she thought was a wall, but turned out to be the toned body of Kane. She felt his hands on her arms steadying her as a chuckle passed his lips, "Better watch yourself, Stephanie. We're out in 10 minutes, remember? I don't want you getting hurt."

Whether or not that was a jab at her mishap last week, she shook it off and only nodded. Truth was, she did forget the big main event tonight that was Kane, Big Show, Seth Rollins versus Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Randy Orton. Of course they had Triple H and J&J Security on their side, once again the numbers game giving them the advantage. She had nothing to worry about; _they_ had nothing to worry about.

"Steph? Are you okay?" Her eyes lifted to meet his, and she saw nothing but sincerity in them. An emotion that hasn't been directed at her in months, not even by her husband.

"I'm fine, Kane, thanks for asking." She put on a smile, hoping to fool the large man in front of her. She would be fine, right? All marriages had their bumps along the road…

Things had gotten bad as soon as the bell rang. The match could not be controlled nor could it even properly start. Stephanie watched from the announcer's desk as the chaos unfolded. Joey and Jamie had been taken out by Orton within seconds and were still MIA while Big Show was currently fighting Roman right in front of her. She had no clue where Kane, Rollins or Hunter were, but she was sure they were all grouped together against Ambrose and Orton. She jumped when Big Show was speared into the barricade right beside her, and found it in her best interest to make her way to the ramp, because she'd be safe there.

Reaching the ramp, she watched as the Authority was being dismantled piece by piece. First J&J, then Show, who next? The body of Kane was tossed over the top rope along with Orton. Joey and Jamie had crawled their way over by Stephanie and were currently making it to their feet. On cue, the five of them all looked up to see Ambrose hitting the ropes, running right towards them. The only problem was; Stephanie was right in the line of fire. There was no way for Hunter to save her; he was with Seth in the ring. Preparing herself for the attack, she lifted her arms up above her and closed her eyes.

Suddenly she felt a pair of arms wrap around her and forcefully pull her away from the group just as Ambrose hit them. She felt the man who grab her stumble a bit from the impact but quickly steady himself. Lowering her arms, she was met with the chest of Kane. Looking up, she saw his panicked face as he set her down just as fast as he had picked her up. His hands nudged her gently in the direction of the ramp as he turned around and went back to the pile of bodies on the ground. As quick as that exchange was, it wasn't missed by half the crowd, or by Triple H.


	4. Chapter 4

Flinching at the sound of a door slamming shut, Kane's eyes followed Hunter as he stalked to his desk, fuming, "Kane, your duties as Director of Operations have been less than helpful as of late. On more than one occasion you have defied _my_ orders which not only cost us matches but also the upper hand!"

Did he not realize there was more to the Authority than just protecting Seth?

"Sir, with all due respect-,"

"Shut it, Kane! I don't want to hear it. Just get out."

"Hunter, I-,"

"Get OUT! I'll figure out what the consequences are and you'll hear of them soon enough."

Stunned, Kane nodded curtly before exiting Hunter's office. Shutting the door, he let out a breath as he tried to compose himself. This was not Hunter. This was not the man he worked with for the past 20 years. Something changed in him, and it wasn't for the better. Kane was truly concerned for his friends in the Authority, and also whoever else decided to cross paths with Hunter.

Stephanie sat in the chair as she watched her husband lash out at Kane. This was no way to treat a man who was so loyal and did everything he was told! In fact, Stephanie thought that he was doing a better job directing everyone around more than Hunter. He had the guts to never back down and still had the moral code to step aside and do the right thing in the end. So why was he getting punished?

"Hunter, I don't think Kane should get any kind of punishment. He didn't do anything wrong." Stephanie felt safe when she was in the ring with Kane. She could remember all the times that Kane stood in front of her while fights broke out, making sure to protect her. He sure seemed to care more than her husband.

"Stephanie, we can't have someone like Kane thinking he can defy orders, or thinking he can make his own without our consent or prior knowledge…"

"Isn't that his job, though? To relieve some of the pressure of running the company off of us?"

She could see him getting upset, and she stood and walked in front of him, "I think you're wrong about Kane. You need to reconsider punishing him." With that, she walked out of his office, leaving him an angry, pissed mess.

Slouching back on the couch in his office, Kane loosened his tie, letting it dangle around his neck. In his other hand there was a glass of whiskey. Hey, if he was going to be ousted as Director of Operations soon, he had to take advantage of all the perks, right? Bringing the glass to his lips, he stiffened as a knock sounded throughout his office. Before he could get himself composed, he saw his door open and in walked Stephanie.

Fearing that she was going to reprimand him, he sat up and started to say something but was cut off, "Kane, it's okay, I'm not here to punish you. I'm here to thank you."

His puzzled expression caused her to laugh and he watched as she sat down next to him, "Uh… if I'm not mistaken, it was your husband who was threatening my job not very long ago."

Another laugh reached his years, "Kane, I want to thank you, for always having my back and protecting me. It might not mean much to you, but it does to me. The little gestures truly do go a long way, and I'll make sure nothing happens to you."

Kane stilled, suddenly the melting ice in his glass was more interesting. He didn't move or say anything until he felt her hand on his that caused him to look back over at her, partly in shock. "I really mean it, Kane. Thank you." He watched her stand up and turn to leave his office. With catlike quickness, he had stood and placed a hand on her shoulder, stepping up behind her.

"It does mean a lot to me. There are some things more important to me than protecting that spoiled little brat Rollins." His voice had dropped to a whisper as he concluded his sentence, but he was sure she had got the message. It was at that moment he realized how close he was to her, and if anyone walked in how it would look. Giving her shoulder a gentle, reassuring squeeze, he backed away, downing his glass of whiskey as he heard his door open and close, signaling she had left.


	5. Chapter 5

"How could you be that blind?!" Exclaimed Hunter as he threw his hands into the air in desperation. He now knew why Stephanie had problems with all his plans as of late; she had lost her faith in Seth Rollins.

"For someone who was so gung-ho on picking Seth, he hasn't shown much improvement."

Shaking his head, what would it take to convince her Seth was the best choice? They had a variety of superstars to pick from, ranging from Daniel Bryan to Damien Sandow, but Seth stood out. He was the first NXT Champion, surely that proved something to Stephanie!

Pulling out a folder full of stats and past and previous plans of the Authority and Seth's career, Hunter shoved them in front of Stephanie, "I want you to look at these and tell me why Seth isn't our best option. He's been consistent and pulling ratings no matter if the crowd hates or loves him. He's money, and he's making _us_ look good."

His eyes narrowed at the refusal of her to look at the files in the folder, "Hunter just look at how Seth has been treated. He's been hand given everything and quite frankly is spoiled rotten." Standing up from his chair, he scratched a palm over his facial hair, "You sound like Kane."

"Kane is right; Seth's performances have been less than outstanding lately. He's run from opponents and walks around like everything in the world is owed to him. I think we need to consider bringing someone else in. Someone who could give him a run for his money." He couldn't believe Stephanie was saying this! After everything they had done together, she wanted to go against his personally hand picked man to become the new future of WWE?

Watching Hunter get more frustrated, she was beginning to feel uncomfortable. He was so entirely opposed to her proposal to bring in a new recruit to the Authority that he was visibly losing his temper. They always worked out decisions together but she realized that he was far too gone to even think of a possibility of shaking up Seth's pristine title reign. Not only that, but other issues had arisen in their marriage, making it difficult to come to any kind of agreement, personal or business. She realized how much more he favored the company over their relationship, and she was not one to take the back seat to something like that.

Raking a hand through her hair, she stood, startling Hunter out of his own musings, "Hunter, I think we need to reconsider everything. Even our marriage." She didn't notice the look of shock, disbelief and anger on his face because the tears had already started to fall as she all but ran out of his office.

Blindly walking through the back halls of the arena, Stephanie tried her best to shield her face and tears from unwanted staff interactions. Rounding a corner, she felt a hard body slam into hers, causing her to fall to the ground.

Hurrying to get up, she didn't register the voice who was trying to help, "Stephanie?"

Turning her head away from Kane's, she didn't want him to see her like this. It didn't last as he gently touched her cheek while saying something along the lines of, "We have to stop meeting like this." His friendly smile turned into a frown when he felt tears on her cheek and he used a bit more force to turn her face to his. Before he could get a word out she had fallen into his chest and his arms immediately went around her. Without saying a word, he quickly led her to his office, keeping her out of sight from the staff littered along the hallways a best as he could.

Closing the door to his office, Kane slid his jacket off and set it on the chair before turning his attention to Stephanie, who was still trying to compose herself. Resting a hand on her arm, he walked her over to the couch and brought her down next to him.

Tilting his head a bit so he could see some of her face, he gently rubbed his fingers along her arm, "Steph, what's going on? Are you hurt?"

Growing impatient at her silence, he was about to ask again when her voice came out in barely a whisper, "We fought, again."

Gritting his teeth, Kane should have seen that coming from a mile away. It wasn't much of a secret how often he heard of Stephanie and Hunter fighting. Whether it was about Authority business or personal issues, he couldn't think of a time during the last six or seven months that they weren't down each other's throats. He was a first hand witness to the downfall of the most powerful couple leading the WWE.

Sighing, he continued rubbing her arm while she sat there, "I'm sorry, I wish there was something I could do."

He felt her shake a bit and he pulled her closer to his chest, not really knowing what else to do.

They sat in complete silence until Kane heard her start talking again, "I told him we need to reconsider our marriage."

Blinking a few times, Kane had to take a second to process what she had just said. _What? They've been married for years! They need to slow down and take a second to think about this._

"Stephanie, you do realize what you said right? What you said to Hunter? I'm sure that what ever is going on with you guys can be fixed-,"

He startled when Stephanie shot up and started pacing in front of him, "No, Kane, not this time. What you don't know is that we've done the counseling, we've done the talks, we've done everything to try and make it work at a business and personal level, but it's just gone. There's nothing left for us to save."

Looking down at his hands folded in his lap, he was trying to absorb everything she was telling him. It was so much to take in, and when he heard her start to cry again he reached for her and brought her back down onto the couch next to him.

Wrapping an arm around her shaking frame, Kane turned so she was almost buried against his chest. He felt her bury her face in his neck and at first he was a bit shocked and had to stop himself from shying away from the sudden intimate position. He knew that she needed someone to comfort her and she trusted him enough, so the least he could do was provide it. The sobs were racking her body and he felt so bad. He had never seen this woman who was so tough and strong break down like this in front of him. Lifting his free hand, he gingerly stroked her hair and hoped that it would soothe her at least a little bit. He lost track of time while hundreds of thoughts engulfed his mind going a million miles and hour so it wasn't until Stephanie started to move that brought him back down to earth. Looking at her, his heart broke at the hurt and sad expression on her face. He would definitely need to have a talk with Hunter, and soon. Taking a bold move, he moved his shaky hand to her face and used his thumb to wipe away the tears that had finally stopped falling. He followed with his finger the trail of tears on her face that led to his hand eventually cupping her face. Lifting his eyes, it wasn't until this very second he was aware of the current position they were in, and the sudden urge to make all of her pain go away. Bringing his other hand up to cup the other side of her face, his thumb repeated the same pattern of wiping her tears away, his eyes not leaving hers the entire time.

A pressure on his knee caused him to look down to see that it was her hand, and his eyes jerked from her hand, to her eyes then lips and he made a split second decision, "I'm sorry."

His voice spoke out in barely a whisper as his lips descended on hers.


	6. Chapter 6

_…_ _his thumb repeated the same pattern of wiping her tears away, his eyes not leaving hers the entire time. A pressure on his knee caused him to look down to see that it was her hand, and his eyes jerked from her hand, to her eyes then lips and he made a split second decision, "I'm sorry." His voice spoke out in barely a whisper as his lips descended on hers…_

It was only a faint touch of his lips on hers, but it was enough to make his heart rate spike. Fighting the urge to pull her closer than she already was, Kane eventually pulled away, trying his hardest to keep his breathing steady. His eyes met hers and he saw so much _life_ in the sparkling orbs. Feeling his resolve crumble, he shut his eyes as he pulled her back in.

The second kiss was nothing like the first one he initiated. He wanted to clear up any confusion he had caused. Stroking his thumbs across her cheeks, he only gave her soft touches with his lips in case she wanted to back out. When he didn't feel her give any kind of resistance, he tilted his head slightly, applying more pressure. His lips slowly worked against hers in what was beginning to become a passionate showing. Sliding his hand around to hold onto the back of her neck, he trailed his other hand down her side to grasp at her waist. Her hands, which he had just realized were resting on his chest, had slid up around his neck with fingers threading through the short cut on the back of his head. Becoming more bold, he lifted her legs over his own as his hand remained on her thigh. Taking another bold move, he swiped the tip of his tongue across her lips, the need for him to claim her mouth suddenly overtaking his body. As soon as his tongue came out to ask for permission again, he was met with a small gasp and he wasted no time in sliding his tongue into her mouth.

The sensations swirling throughout Stephanie were close to indescribable. The way Kane's tongue and lips expertly controlled her own and the kiss evoked feelings she thought had long been buried. He paid careful attention to the noises she made as he experimented and tested boundaries that were driving her insane. She felt pride swell in her own chest at the times he would emit little groans of pleasure when she toyed with his tongue. She hadn't been touched or kissed like this for the better part of a year, and while she knew what they were doing was wrong, she had a feeling that neither of them would stop.

Rubbing his fingers along her leg, Kane had no intentions of stopping. He didn't care about the possible repercussions if they were caught or if things went too far, he just wanted to be the man who made her pain go away. He wanted to be the man who could take care of her far better than anyone else. Breaking the kiss for the first time, both of them struggled to get air back into their lungs. The need to kiss her again was far too tempting for Kane, and within seconds his lips had connected with hers in a rougher embrace.

A sudden knock at his office door jolted him out of his euphoric concentration. Hoping they would go away, he continued his passionate assault on her mouth until another much louder knock sounded, "Sir, you're out in 10 minutes."

A loud grunt came out of his mouth as a response as he finally pulled away from Stephanie, who was almost underneath him. Sitting up, he brought her with him and it finally struck him what had just transpired.

His eyes widened as he stared at the woman whose lips were red and shirt and hair disheveled, "Oh, god, Steph…"

He was silenced by her soft lips on his and a comforting smile, "It's okay. There's nothing to worry about. Now go before you miss your match."

Nodding, Kane stood and threw his jacket on and grabbed his elbow pads.

Just as he was about to leave Stephanie halted him, "You kinda have a little-,"

His nose scrunched in confusion until he felt her thumb rub his lips, clearing off the red lipstick. His ears pricked as they turned bright red when he realized what she meant. Her laugh made him feel a bit better as he turned and reached for the door but was halted again. Turning around with impatience showing on his face, he immediately felt her hands on his chest, fixing his tie.

Exhaling a breath, he leant down and pressed a kiss to her cheek, "Thank you."

With that, he rushed out of his office, leaving Stephanie alone. What he didn't see was Stephanie closing his door and sliding down to the floor, a mess of emotions.

Waiting at the gorilla, Kane fidgeted and toyed with his jacket and elbow pads. He too was suffering from emotional turmoil. As his pyro hit, he couldn't help but worry about the situation he had gotten both of them into. On the other hand, he knew that they _both_ needed each other.


	7. Chapter 7

Stephanie watched the main event unfold from the monitor in Kane's office. She sighed watching him get pinned… again… for the umpteenth time. She wondered why he was always losing, trying to get everyone else to look better. At this point she kind of had an inkling that it was the brilliant plans of Hunter to have Kane lose and make Seth look amazing. She wanted to fix that, and suddenly she sprung up and rushed to Kane's desk to grab a pad of paper. She sat down and started jotting down her own plans for the future of the Authority.

The TV cameras were shut off and Kane eventually stood up from laying at ringside. He felt like he had tweaked something in his back from the bump he took to the announcer's table. As he slowly walked back a bunch of fans still waiting for the dark match started calling him names and insulting him. He ignored them and continued on backstage where Seth was bragging to Hunter about his big defeat over John Cena. Joey and Jamie were proudly standing by Seth, backing up every word he was saying. Kane shook his head and took the back way to his office. He didn't feel like dealing with anyone at the moment.

When he entered his office he saw that Stephanie had left and he felt a little sad that she wasn't there but he couldn't expect anything else. What had happened a while ago probably meant nothing to her and she would be back with Hunter in no time. Feeling his mood continue to drop, he packed up his things and had everything ready to head to the next hotel. He was about to leave when he spotted a note on his desk. Nearing it, he saw the familiar cursive of Stephanie and he plucked the piece of paper off the desk to read it;

 _Kane, when you return you won't see me. I had to attend to some… business. I want to speak to you about what happened and please don't worry, nobody will find out. I think we need to figure out our own situation first before anyone else does. So please, give me a call so we can set up somewhere to sort things out. Thanks- Steph_

Kane felt a smile touch his lips as he folded the note up and shoved it into his jacket pocket. He picked up his things and headed out of the arena into his vehicle and drove off.

On the ride to the next hotel he felt his phone vibrating.

Answering it, he heard Stephanie's voice come from the other end, "Kane, hi, where are you?"

Kane swore he heard a sense of urgency in the tone of her voice and he quickly replied that he was a couple miles away from the hotel. Stephanie's side of the line went silent and he was worried until she came back in, "Great. I really would like to see you when you get here. I'll be in room 201."

Confused, Kane went to ask what if Hunter was there but she had already hung up. He set his phone down and sped up, making it to the hotel in record time.

Walking in, he went to the receptionist and started filling out the paperwork for a room. He was stopped when the desk clerk said he already had room. Kane lifted his head, "You sure you got the right guy?"

The clerk shook his head, "Yessir. A lovely woman was here and signed you in. Your room number is 201."

Kane was confused yet again that Stephanie had them together in a room. He skeptically took the key and grabbed his things walking into the elevator. When he reached the room, he knocked on the door. He waited a couple of seconds before it opened and he saw Stephanie dressed down. His eyebrow raised and he gave her a questioning look but she just dragged him in without a word.

Once inside, Kane immediately noticed the lack of Hunter and his buddies. It was almost too silent for Hunter and Stephanie. Turning to face her, Kane shook his head, "What's going on? Where's Hunter?"

"He's not with me, Kane. I needed to sort some things out without him around. I need to speak to you about what happened and I also need to go over some plans with you."

Kane nodded and dropped his things. He was then led over to a small table with some food on it. Sitting down he watched as Stephanie sat across from him with a smile on her face, "Dig in. I know you're hungry."

Kane leant back against the small plastic chair in the hotel room, stuffed from the food Stephanie had gotten him. She was relatively quiet throughout the meal and only spoke a bit about how the show was and the ratings. He was worried that she would tell him that the kiss meant nothing and that he was being kicked out of the Authority because it was wrong to initiate something more than professionalism when working together. The more lost in his thoughts he got, the more paranoid he became. He wondered if any of this was a good idea.

"Kane? Can we speak now?" Stephanie's voice rung out in the quiet room. Taking a deep breath, Kane sat up straight and nodded. Folding his hands on top of the table he waited for Stephanie to begin speaking.

"Kane… about what happened earlier. I went to you because I trust you. We have known each other for many, many years and aside from Hunter you are the man I need to go to for help. When Hunter and I started having trouble in our relationship, it seemed simple enough to fix. So for the last year or so we went to counselor's and took advice from everyone. We tried to mend this rift but it just wasn't working out. For a while we were civil with each other, but the past couple of months have been terrible. We are no longer a working team. Hunter refuses to listen to any of my ideas or plans. He spends hours upon hours trying to make Seth into his prodigal son. It's like he's obsessed or something. These past few days have been the final straw. You witnessed first-hand how he was acting. It's just… not healthy to be with him right now. The things you never saw Kane, the things that happened behind closed doors, those were the breaking point. I can't remain with Hunter when he's like this."

Kane noticed Stephanie trying to skip around and avoid the elephant in the room. He remained silent and listened to her ramble on about some other things until he placed his hand on top of hers and looked her in the eyes, "Where does this leave us?"

Kane felt his heart drop into his stomach when he saw Stephanie's face change to one of confusion. "I wish I could tell you that I know for sure, but I can't. All I know is that… if we… choose to _continue_ this…" Kane watched as Stephanie gestured around her with her hands, signaling whatever their relationship had turned into, "… then we will have to just be careful. I just informed Hunter of wanting to separate, and he would kill you if he found out what happened so soon."

"So, do we act as if nothing happened?" Kane was starting to get impatient with her refusing to come clean about what she wanted. Taking a deep breath and calming himself, he reasoned that this was probably new to her and she was going through a whirlwind of emotions.

"No Kane that's the thing. These people, and Hunter, need to see that Seth isn't the greatest as everyone thinks he is. They need to believe that there is a new threat coming to challenge for Seth's title, and place in the company-"

"Okay but where do we fit in with this?"

Stephanie smiled at Kane, knowing he would love her plans, "You're going to beat Seth for the WWE WHC. We're going to destroy the Authority."


	8. Chapter 8

Kane sat there in shock. _What_? _Me?_ Laughing it off as a joke, he shook his head, "Look, Stephanie, I know you are having some problems with Hunter and Seth, but _me_? You want _me_ to somehow miraculously beat Seth and become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion?"

Stephanie figured Kane would take it as a joke so she pulled out a couple pieces of paper with her handwriting scrawled all over the pages. She pushed them towards Kane, hoping he would understand where she was coming from. "Kane, please I know this is kind of a shock to you but read these over and think about it."

Kane glanced down at the papers strewn out in front of him. Stephanie had gone to bed almost two hours ago but he couldn't find it in himself to sleep. He had read and reread her plans but for the life of him he couldn't grasp why he, of all people, Stephanie wanted to take the title. He had an inkling that she wanted to shove it in Hunter's face that she didn't need him to remain on top of the WWE. He sighed and went through her notes and plans again, but his insecurities were acting up. He was old. He was contemplating leaving within the next year or so. He had lost so many times it just ruined his entire career. The fans hated him. They would flip if he ever went near the WWE WHC. What good was he even to Stephanie?

Sighing, he pushed the papers away from his tired, red eyes. Rubbing his face, he stood from the table and quietly made his way to the bathroom. As he got back into the room, he saw Stephanie's frame under the blanket in one of the beds. He silently sent a thank you her way for renting the room with two beds. He had no clue what would have happened if he and her had to share the same one.

Waking up the next morning Kane wasn't surprised to see that Stephanie wasn't in the room. He knew she went to work out early enough to not screw her plans up later in the day. Sitting up, he checked his phone to see where exactly the Smackdown tapings were being held and he viewed his other texts and missed calls. None of them were really of that much importance to him so he set his phone back down and stood up to go get ready for later tonight.

SMACKDOWN TAPING THAT NIGHT

Running through the arena's hallways Stephanie was looking for Kane. She had finally completed the final plan for how the both of them would begin to take down the Authority… the only problem was they were on the concluding segment in ten minutes and he was nowhere to be found.

Peacefully walking through and nodding his head to those he passed, Kane was wondering why everyone was looking at him funny. He didn't think he had something on his face or his suit. That was when he heard heels hitting the ground from behind him and he turned to see Stephanie rushing towards him. He fought the urge to laugh at her trying to stay composed but that didn't happen when she suddenly cursed as one of her heels broke.

"Steph, you okay there?"

Kane wasn't one to laugh often but at the sight of her distraught but cute face he couldn't help it. Lending her a hand, he helped her sit on one of the crates that littered the hallway and he picked her heel up and studied it, seeing if it could be fixed. He jumped when her hand smacked the heel away and instead a pad of notes found their way into his hand.

"Kane! We are out in ten minutes!" She huffed out and hopped down from the crate, snatching her heel from the floor and rushed off to find some superglue in the costume department.

Chuckling, he shook his head and hopped up on the crate himself studying the notes for the segment. A few minutes later, a crew member called his name out signaling for the ending of Smackdown. Nodding, he got back down and walked towards the gorilla where he saw Triple H, Seth, Joey, Jamie, Big Show and Stephanie standing. Stuffing the small notebook in his jacket pocket, he stood along next to Joey and Jamie waiting for their music to hit.

Upon arrival into the ring, the Authority resumed their 'protective' stance around Seth. Stephanie planted herself next to Hunter as Kane was to her left, Big Show to Hunter's right and Seth was flanked on both sides by Jamie and Joey. She fought the urge to glance at Kane, knowing he was probably a bit worried about her own plans for this segment.

As the crowd quieted on their chorused boos and jeers, Stephanie lifted the mic, "Ladies and gentlemen…. Welcome to Thursday night Smackdown!"

She waved her hand, enjoying the crowd's confusion as they couldn't decide whether to cheer or boo that statement.

"As you all know; it is our primary responsibility to protect the future of WWE…" The camera panned to the gold belt donning Seth's waist, glimmering proudly in the bright lights. Stephanie broke the stance, walking around the ring a bit, "And one of those responsibilities includes prepping Seth for even _greater_ accomplishments."

Fidgeting next to Hunter, Kane didn't know how well these plans of Stephanie's would work out. Hunter, Joey, Jamie, Show AND Seth had no clue what they were planning. Figuring that things would be sorted out on Raw, he decided to go forward with what Stephanie had him doing.

Stepping forward, he held up the mic grasped in his hand, "As Director of Operations, it is in _my_ best interest to make sure Mr. Rollins fulfills his potential. To fulfill said potential…"

His voice drifted off as he turned his attention towards Seth. Seeing the sudden look of fear in the young man's eyes lit a fire in Kane. Dropping the mic, he had his hand around the throat of Seth and within seconds he lifted him up and proceeded to slam him right back down onto the canvas. The crowd was immediately silenced in shock at the events that just unfolded before them.

Bending down and retrieving the microphone, Kane straightened and adjusted his suit, "… he's going to have to get through **_me_**."


	9. Chapter 9

Upon seeing what happened, Hunter motioned for the immediate cut of the cameras, and turned to see Kane backing up from the group with a crazed look in his eyes. His attention turned to Seth, who was sprawled out on the ground, whimpering in pain. Bending down, he shook the young man in an attempt to snap him out of his daze. The entire time, though, Hunter's eyes never left Kane's. _What the hell does he mean Seth is going to have to get through him? Did he even read my plans?!_ He then stood very stiffly, allowing Jamie, Joey and Show to tend to Seth. Stepping out of the ring he briskly strode up the ramp and into the backstage area, leaving them out in the ring. Entering his office, he slammed the door shut and cursed, having to reorganize his plans for Monday.

Kane panted as he pulled the tie loose from his neck, allowing some air to circulate under the suit he was wearing. He knew he would get a lashing from Hunter, but at this point he didn't care. The feeling of slamming Seth's body down onto the mat with such force sparked a new desire in his body, and he liked it. All previous concerns he had for siding with Stephanie had disappeared and as he turned to her, he saw the same look of desire upon her face.

Walking with her to the corner of the ring, he held the rope open for her letting her exit and he followed suit. While he walked behind her, he could hear the confused shouts of the men left in the ring. Reaching the gorilla, Kane let Stephanie enter first and as he walked past the curtain he was met with a livid Hunter.

"Kane, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing?!" Hunter hissed out, not wanting to cause too much of a scene.

Backing up slowly, Kane raised his hands, "As of late, Seth has been less than outstanding. He's been more of an annoyance to be exact. That kid is going to have to learn how to handle his _own_ feathers getting ruffled for a while."

Leaving Hunter standing by the gorilla, Kane headed to his locker room. He hadn't seen Stephanie since reaching backstage but figured she ran off to work on more of her brilliant plans. Turning the handle to the locker room, he stepped inside and within seconds he felt Stephanie jump into his arms.

"Everything went perfect! Oh, Kane I can't wait for Monday!" Stephanie's excitement was contagious and Kane couldn't help the smile that made its way onto his face.

Setting her down after a few seconds of being suffocated by her grip, he chuckled seeing her rushing around talking about what's going to happen Monday and the next Smackdown and the upcoming pay per view. He listened to her cheerful voice ring in his ears for a few seconds until he had an idea of his own.

"Steph… hold on… I've got – "

"We should plan for a long term championship run with you – "

"Stephanie…"

"Oh! What about you headline Wrestlemania! It could be the match of the year!"

Sighing, Kane stepped in front of her and placed his hands on her arms, pulling her towards him and placing a chaste kiss on her lips. Backing up, he grinned seeing that he effectively stopped her entire train of thought.

"Thought that would work. Now, would you like to hear my idea?"

Stephanie nodded, wondering what Kane came up with to further their destruction of the Authority.

Pacing back and forth, he started explaining to Stephanie his idea, "Since you want me to win the title, there needs to be some sort of reason for it, or some sort of hidden motive. I expressed tonight that Seth will have to get through me, but at what cost? At this point, who will even believe me?"

"Kane, the point of us doing this is to show the Authority that WE will become the much bigger, stronger and better power in the WWE. To do that we need to express our passion for it and make it known that we won't be taken lightly."

Nodding eagerly, Kane was able to trace where Stephanie was going with this, "Right, so I thought that on Monday we go out together and announce what we are going to do. But it needs to be believable. It needs to let not only the Authority know but the crowd as well."

Stephanie listened to Kane, glad that they were on the same page. She would have to brainstorm with him how they were going to be able to convince everyone they meant business. Letting Kane pack his things up, she blurted out,

"Kiss me."

Stopping his current task, Kane lifted his head, "Excuse me?"

"On Monday, that's what we do. That will get everyone's attention!"

Looking at her skeptically, Kane wasn't so sure this was a good idea, "You're telling me that we're going to go through with this right in front of Hunter, and risk not only termination from the Authority but our careers?! Not to mention, Hunter is still your husband!" He was blown away by Stephanie smiling and nodding enthusiastically.

"This is what will spark the downfall of the Authority! We get kicked out, Hunter and I have our fallout, thus propelling you into the title feud with Seth. It's not just Seth needing to get through you, this is for the entire future of the company. This is for the both of us."


	10. Chapter 10

Tapping his fingers on the desk, Kane couldn't calm the nerves going haywire in his system. Raw was only in a few hours, and he had yet to discuss with Stephanie the entirety of their plans. While they were travelling together over the weekend, he tried bringing the subject up, but Stephanie was more involved with sightseeing and spending a few days of downtime with him. He couldn't understand how she wasn't freaking out about this. He figured that it was probably the fact that she was tied to this business and always got her way. He supposed that being involved with her rather than Hunter yielded more support and his career was a bit safer… but not by much.

A knock sounded on the closed door to his office and he spun in the chair, voicing out for whoever knocked to come inside. The door creaked open and in walked Stephanie, with her usual bright smile and chipper attitude,

"Are you ready for tonight?"

Kane's first reaction was to go with the flow and tell her everything would be great, but he shook his head, worry starting to form his facial expression,

"Steph, I still don't think what we are going to do is right. Hunter was completely livid after Smackdown went off the air on Thursday, not to mention the voicemails he left you over the weekend. He still has no clue what has happened between us and quite frankly I don't feel like becoming jobless tonight."

A sigh escaped Stephanie's mouth and she hopped herself up on Kane's desk. She had a feeling he would be wary of this, and she couldn't blame him. Hunter wasn't about to take any of this lightly, and she was positive he would turn into a madman if he saw her kiss Kane. She had collected all necessary documents and lawyered up for the coming mess of a separation she would be enduring with Hunter. The process was already started, all of the files had been electronically sent to Hunter and his own lawyer, but it was the waiting that was nerve-wracking.

"Kane, trust me, there is nothing you can do that will get you fired tonight. Hunter has no jurisdiction whether to deem you fit for this job, the most he can do under his authoritative power is… well… kick you out from the Authority. But that's what we want! We need you to be kicked out and lose any last insecurities you developed being under the power of Hunter."

Hoping her pep talk would work on Kane, she checked the time, there still being a while left before Raw. Her eyes cast downwards at Kane, who was still tapping his fingers on the desk. She noticed the look of worry and apprehension on his face and felt bad for putting him in this position,

"Kane… we don't have to do this if we don't want to. _You_ don't have to do this if you don't want to. I just thought – ."

"No, Stephanie, we are going to do this."

Hearing the determination come out in his voice, she cracked a smile, knowing deep down that she had won him over. Getting down off of his desk, she walked behind him and planted her hands on his massive shoulders. Applying pressure, she eased his tensed muscles for a couple minutes, hoping it would keep him calm for the remainder of the night. Once she felt he was relaxed enough, she bent down and let her hands slide across his chest and she pressed her lips on his cheek,

"This is going to work; I have full faith in both of us."

Giving him a slight squeeze, she felt his hand come up and lay on top of hers,

"I believe you."

Stephanie's music hit, blaring throughout the arena at the start of Monday Night Raw. Coming out first was Stephanie, waving cheerfully to the crowd. Walking down the ramp she had to remind herself that things would work out for the better, and it would cement the start of a new turn in WWE.

Stepping into the ring, she held the mic up to her mouth, but first took a few seconds hearing the loud boos the fans were sending her way,

"Boo all you want, but today marks the turn of a new _face…_ "

She folded her arms, a grin playing on her features as the loud pop of Kane's pyro struck, and his music hit. She watched him walk down the ramp, clad in his suit and red tie, carrying a clipboard.

Kane listened to the crowd around him, most were booing but he could notice the slight confusion and murmur going around as he made his way into the ring. Circling around Stephanie and the table placed in the ring, he faced the crowd, basking in their boos for the final time.

"What happened on Smackdown was _not_ a mistake. It was to show each and every one of you who want to question authority, that you _can_ be it, take it and _make it crumble_."

The crowd continued its confused murmuring while they watched Kane drop the mic and his hand turned, showing the clipboard to be his and Stephanie's contracts binding them to the Authority. Reaching into this pocket, he brought out a box of matches.

Stephanie grabbed the matches from Kane's grip while he held the clipboard out. The fans were silenced as Stephanie lit a few matches, fire sparking and swaying on the tips. Time slowed down while the matches caught the clipboard on fire. Kane grinned feeling the heat warming his hand and face up and he then dropped the clipboard onto the table, watching as it caught entirely into flames.

Taking a deep breath, he turned to Stephanie who was equally as excited as he was. Knowing that this would define everything they would be working for, he gave a small nod and within seconds she had her arms wrapped around his neck and he leant down until his lips met hers.

The entire crowd was silenced at the sight in front of them. A pin could have dropped and have been heard throughout the arena. Breaking away from the kiss, Kane smirked and tilted his head back, laughing maniacally as he glanced once more at the raging fire burning what was left of their Authority contracts. Leading Stephanie out of the ring, the crowd silence was deafening even after they walked backstage.


	11. Chapter 11

Shoving his way through the crowd of WWE superstars piled near the large monitor in the main backstage area, Triple H was absolutely _livid._ Reaching the gorilla, he had hoped to run into Kane, or, rather, his fist running into Kane's face, but when neither him nor Stephanie were to be seen, he stormed off down the ramp into the ring.

Yanking a microphone out from the ringside worker's hand, Hunter furiously spat out, his voice ringing around the arena, "KANE, GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!"

Leaning against the ropes facing the titantron, Hunter stared towards the ramp, itching to see or hear anything that would indicate Kane would be coming out. A few minutes passed by, but no indication that he would be coming out. Bringing the mic to his lips, he tried a different approach, "Stephanie, why don't you come out here. We need to talk about this."

Waiting for another few minutes, he was growing angrier as the seconds passed. _How dare both of them pull this shit!_ Throwing the mic down, he left the ring in a red haze. Nothing would be stopping him from finding either of them.

Reaching an abandoned room, Kane shut the door behind him and locked it while Stephanie flicked the lights on. He was met with her lips on his for a few seconds before she pulled back, a large smile breaking out on her face, "Did you see everyone's reactions?! They didn't know what to think! This is perfect!"

"Yeah, I saw them. Some of 'em were just sitting there with their mouths hanging open." He watched Stephanie bounce around in happiness, feeling quite elated himself. Unfortunately, he couldn't shake the bad feeling that something would go terribly wrong the more this progressed.

Deciding to skip the Smackdown tapings that week, Stephanie and Kane worked together to plot out some more plans for the coming weeks. TLC was coming up sooner than expected, and Kane knew they had to start creating different segments for each show. So far, they had their own loose scripts written to follow but neither of them knew how Hunter or Seth would react. Kane thought that the lesser scripted their plans were, the easier it would be to make things up as the moment happened, and for the most part Stephanie agreed.

Tossing the pencil down onto the coffee table, Kane had enough plotting for one night. Rubbing his eyes, he leaned back on the small sofa planted in the small hotel room. Plucking the remote from the arm rest, he flipped to a random channel showing a movie. Within seconds he felt Stephanie leaning against his broad chest, bringing a blanket with her. Draping his arm around her midsection, he settled back onto the cushions, watching the television. A while later, he glanced down, seeing Stephanie had fallen asleep on him. A faint smile touched his lips when he shifted and she snuggled closer. Tightening his arm around her, he kicked his legs up on the coffee table and dozed off shortly after.

Meanwhile Hunter was losing his mind. After no contact from Kane or Stephanie since the segment on Monday, he called on Seth to fill in for the Authority segments for Smackdown. While he didn't want to make Seth pull double duty, he had no other choice. He was going to get to the bottom of this, and he was going to come out on top.

Checking his emails, his eyes widened when he pulled one open from his lawyer. Reading it, his heart dropped once the words sunk in that Stephanie wanted a divorce. _It's all that bastard Kane's fault!_ Nearly shoving his laptop off his desk, he stood and rushed out to find Seth.

Locating Seth in the catering room, Hunter whipped him around, startling the young man, "Get your ass out to the ring. I have business to take care of." He watched as Seth processed what he was saying, and he quickly grabbed his title and rushed out, shoving the last few bites of pizza into his mouth.

Heading into the ring with Seth by his side, Hunter grabbed a mic and he immediately started, "Kane, Stephanie, you burnt your contracts, you skipped out on meetings and you skipped out on tonight's show. You wanted my attention? You got it."

He stalked around the ring, eyeing the title grasped in Seth's hand. Suddenly, an idea sprang into his head, "Since you decided to go against us, it's clear what you want. At TLC, it'll be Kane versus Rollins for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship."

The crowd sprung to its feet in a chorus of cheers and boos. Hunter

dropped the mic and went to exit the ring, only to be stopped by Seth. Turning, he was met with a confused and agitated attitude, "Yo, Hunter, what are you doing? Kane hasn't earned _any_ shot at _my_ title! I shouldn't have to face him!"

Growling in frustration, Hunter walked closer to Seth. Slapping his hand on his chest where the title was resting, he spoke loud enough for him to hear, "Don't worry. Kane will _not_ be leaving TLC with that title."


	12. Chapter 12

GO HOME RAW

Rushing through the back hallways Kane was searching for Stephanie. He had gotten word from both Joey and Jamie as he arrived at the arena that he was scheduled to face Seth at TLC this Sunday for the title. A smirk graced his features knowing if Hunter wanted to play the game, he was just as good at it.

Walking into his office, he smiled seeing Stephanie looking equally happy as him. She rushed up to him and jumped into his arms, squealing excitedly, "You got the title match! This is going so well!"

He nodded enthusiastically and set her down, "I have the perfect plan for our segment. If Hunter wants to create the match, I add the stipulation. He has just as much authoritative power as we do."

"What's the stipulation?"

"That, my dear, is a surprise."

Kane grinned, not wanting to tell her until they were in front of the crowd. Taking her hand, he led her out of the office and towards the gorilla.

Oddly enough, Stephanie hadn't heard from Hunter himself since this whole thing broke out. She wondered if he had read the divorce papers from her lawyers yet. Glancing at Kane waiting for his music to hit, she saw a look of apprehension cross his face. She couldn't help but wonder if she forced him into this somehow by going to him about her troubles with Hunter in the first place. Suddenly she was pulled from her thoughts when Kane tugged her out of the curtain with him.

Reaching the ring, Kane led Stephanie in and both were all smiles. He couldn't quite grasp whether the crowd was cheering or booing them, but that didn't dampen his mood when he cheerfully echoed out his greetings to the crowd.

"I must apologize, for we missed Smackdown on Thursday. However, word got to me that I was put in a title match with Seth Rollins this Sunday. Being its Tables, Ladders and Chairs, I say our match be just that. Tables. Ladders. Chairs."

He heard the crowd begin to cheer again at the mention of the match. He grinned stepping back to allow Stephanie to have her time to talk.

"Adding off of this, I believe it's only fair that we speak face to face –."

Suddenly Hunter's music hit, and both Kane and Stephanie turned to the ramp. Appearing were Hunter, Seth, Big Show, Jamie and Joey. Kane's brow furrowed seeing Big Show clad in his wrestling attire.

"Kane, Stephanie, being both of you are there together in the ring, and both know what's going on, it's only fair that _I_ get to decide when we speak. Whatever the both of you are planning to do, it won't happen. You can burn your contracts, leave the Authority, but in the end I have the final say-."

Stephanie brought the mic to her mouth, shaking her head, "Hunter. Last time I checked, you only had power because of ME. You might still be in charge of the Authority, but Kane and I have the mind and power to take you down for good. Once Kane grabs that belt Sunday you'll be stripped of all power!"

Feeling rage boiling inside of him, Hunter turned towards Show, motioning him to go for Kane, "Get him."

Kane watched as Show advanced, and he stepped in front of Stephanie. He saw Hunter calling for a referee as well. Glaring at the group situated at the ramp, he figured this wouldn't be a walk in the park. He turned to Stephanie and told her to go sit by the ring announcer where she would be safe. He led her to the corner of the ring and he held the ropes for her and he quickly stripped himself of his upper garments, tossing them down to the ground. Turning around he was met with the large mitt like hands of Big Show.

Dodging a fist flying towards his face, Kane heard the bell ring. He glanced at Big Show, dodging another fist. _Does he look… sad?_ Kane and Big Show had their issues, but were friends for the most part. He was pretty excited when Show joined the Authority, but now after his leaving he supposed Show wasn't fond of that.

Locking up with him, Kane was shoved backwards, hitting the ropes. He sped forward nailing a boot to Show's face, stunning him for a few seconds. He ran back against the ropes and flew forward, hitting Show with a clothesline. Yet to knock him to his feet, he uppercut him, causing him to stumble to the corner. Going after him, he began to punch Show repeatedly, making him cower under the second turnbuckle. Backing off, he took a few breaths and glanced to the outside of the ring, seeing Seth had come to Show's side. Making sure to keep an eye out for him, Kane went back to working on Big Show.

…

Laying there on the mat after a huge spear, Kane heard Stephanie calling for him to get up. He also heard Big Show's finishing taunt. Staggering up, he watched as Big Show was winding up to nail him with the knockout punch. Dodging the move at the last second, Kane backed against the ropes, his feet being caught by Seth's hand. Spinning around he started screaming at him telling him to let go, and eventually Seth let go, lifting his hands up in defeat. Turning back to Show, Kane saw black as his jaw was met with a fist, knocking him unconscious.

Minutes later, he felt Stephanie shaking him. Lifting his head, he adjusted his jaw, feeling nothing out of place. He had a killer headache, though. Pushing himself up on his hands, he heard Stephanie scream as his head was forcibly slammed into the mat by Seth's foot. The last few things he noticed was Seth's music blaring too loudly for him and tons of paired feet surrounding him.

Stephanie watched, horrified, as the scene of watching Seth curb stomp Kane into the mat unfolded before her. She couldn't recall a time when Seth did it that viciously. Her attempt to drag Kane out of the ring fell short when he was twice her own weight. She had to choice but to bend down beside him, hoping that nobody would do anything else. Looking up at the group that was the Authority, she cowered when Seth and the others turned their attention towards her and Kane. She watched Hunter motion for a couple of them to go grab something outside of the ring and as he turned back to her, she saw hurt displayed in his eyes. It was short lived, however, as his expression turned to one of betrayal and she saw Seth and Show slide back into the ring holding steel chairs.

Hunter stood above Stephanie and Kane's weakened body as he glanced at the two men holding steel chairs. A nod of his head directed at them caused them to approach Kane, chairs poised. He heard Stephanie begging to not do it but he only shook his head and backed off, allowing Seth and Show to do as they pleased.

Stephanie tried to grab onto Kane's arm to shake him out of his daze but it was to no avail. She helplessly watched Show drag him away from her and back to the center of the ring. Chair against flesh rung out into the arena, piercing Stephanie's ears. Getting to her feet, she went for Hunter, who knew she was coming. She was held back easily by his own strong grip while Show set a chair under Kane's head. Her screams and pleas did nothing but fuel Hunter on as he shouted at Seth to finish him. For the second time that night, Stephanie watched Kane get curb stomped, this time onto a steel chair.


	13. Chapter 13

Stephanie remained out in the ring with Kane as the medics tended to him. The Authority had dispersed immediately after Stephanie attempted to go for the smallest of the group, Jamie Noble. Asking if he would be alright, the medic only shrugged, telling her he would have to get some thorough medical examinations at the hospital. She suddenly gasped when Kane sat up, clutching his head.

A painful growl left Kane's mouth as he blinked a few times. Glancing around, he first noticed Stephanie and a few medics in the ring with him, and the fans were piling out of the arena. He assumed the show had been over for a while now, but he had no idea how long he was out.

Turning towards Stephanie, he choked out, "H-How long was I out? What happened?"

Fear struck him as he only shook her head sadly, telling him with the look in her eyes that he would have to watch it himself. That it was too painful for her to rehash to him. Going to stand, the medics were immediately by his side, there to help him. Shaking them off, he muttered that he was fine, and he just wanted to leave. He staggered to a standing position and headed towards the ropes, making his way out. He felt Stephanie lifting his arm over her shoulder as she steadied him and the two made their way up the ramp and backstage.

The second both walked behind the curtain, WWE's doctor was immediately there to examine Kane. Flashing a light into his eyes to check for head trauma, Kane growled and smacked the light out of the doctor's hand, "Let me at least shower and calm down first!" He was finally coming to his senses that he was ganged up on from the Authority, and the first thing he wanted to do was to wring Seth and Hunter's necks.

A small touch to his back made him look at Stephanie, who had concerned laced on her face, "Kane, please just let the doctor check you. You need to be healthy for this Sunday"

He sighed softly, knowing she was right. Turning back to the doctor he mumbled an apology and told him he would be fine with an exam. The doctor quickly whisked him away to the medical room, with Kane hoping a trip to the hospital wouldn't be needed.

Stephanie paced outside of the medical room, waiting for Kane to be done with his exam. She couldn't shake the visions of watching him being brutalized by the Authority tonight. The way his head bounced on that steel chair made a cold shiver go through her. He would be lucky if he wasn't at least concussed! Hearing the door creak open, she turned to see Kane, who had a cool, damp towel around his neck and a small bandage on his head. Gasping softly, she saw his tired face, fearing the worst,

"What did the doctor say?"

"I have a thick skull, some pathetic curb stomp onto a chair isn't going to put me away."

Stephanie laughed at his remark, knowing he was probably dealing with some pain. She poked her head into the medical room, asking the doctor if Kane really was alright.

"He's just dazed a bit. Mighty stubborn and strong, though, I'll give him that."

"He can participate this Sunday, right?"

"He'll be fine. The only thing I recommend is that he takes it easy next show, just in case."

"Okay, thanks."

Walking back out, Stephanie saw Kane leaning against the wall, rubbing his head. Approaching him, she laid her hand on his arm to catch his attention, "Are you alright?"

A weak smile appeared on his face and he nodded, "Of course."

"You know; you took a pretty few hard hits to the head out there. Let's just take it easy for the next couple of days before Smackdown."

He nodded again, understanding her concern for him. He allowed her to lead him to his locker room and ease him onto the couch. His eyes followed her movements as she rushed around grabbing all of his belongings.

"Why don't we hold the contract signing on Smackdown? And we get you out of there before an ambush happens?"

Shaking his head, he glanced at her while she packed up the rest of the items, "I can't look weak, then everyone will know I will lose, even the Authority."

"Kane that's the point. We get you out before you really are injured, everyone thinks you already are injured, and come Sunday when you're completely fine it'll come as a shock!"

Feeling too weak to argue with her, he nodded and tipped his head back, shutting his eyes. His head was pounding and all he wanted was to get to the hotel room and down some pain medications with a full nights' sleep.

A while later his eyes snapped open and he sat up straight to see Stephanie was sitting beside him tinkering on her phone and he asked panicked what time it was and how long he was out and her laugh put him at ease,

"Relax, you dozed off for a few minutes. Everything is packed and in the car, ready for us to head to the hotel."

He nodded, thankful his headache had subsided a bit so he was able to stand without feeling nauseous. Offering to take the bags, he watched, amused, to see Stephanie hoisting all of them over her shoulder and carrying them out of the now empty locker room with him in tow.

Once the bags were loaded into the car, both got inside it and Stephanie turned to Kane, seeing he looked completely wiped out after tonight's events. Laying her hand on his arm to get his attention, she smiled, "We will be at the hotel soon, and you're going to shower and sleep. Take it easy until Thursday. I'll take care of everything."

A weak smile graced his features as he nodded, not finding it in himself to voice any opposition towards her remarks. He shut his eyes again hearing the engine of the car start and within seconds he was out again.

Arriving at the hotel, Kane and Stephanie headed inside with all of their items. Kane stood to the back, hoping he wouldn't catch the attention of anyone. It's not that he wasn't grateful for his fans, but he just wanted sleep. Seeing Stephanie waving him over, he nodded and dragged the bags behind him as the couple headed up to their room. He noticed Stephanie was quieter than usual, but he could only assume that was because of the earlier events that transpired.

Walking into the small room, he sighed dropping the bags onto the floor and immediately went for the bed. Unfortunately, he was stopped short when he felt Stephanie blocking him and shoving him off towards the bathroom,

"No. You take a shower and clean yourself up. Then you sleep, okay?"

Sighing, he mustered a small "fine" before walking into the bathroom and shutting the door, going to shower. Staring at himself in the mirror, he frowned a little. _How am I to be the champion this Sunday when I look like shit? I'm nowhere near as good as I looked fifteen years ago. I don't see why Stephanie is pushing this._ Shaking his head, he turned away from his reflection, not wanting to upset himself further.

A long, hot shower later, he emerged from the bathroom in a pair of shorts to see Stephanie was already in the bed beside his. Checking the time, he was astounded at how late it already was. Sometimes it was easy to forget how late Raw gets over, adding the time to pack, travel and check into the hotel. Sliding into bed, he pulled the stiff covers over himself, grunting in agitation at the uncomfortableness they caused him to feel. Glancing over at Stephanie, he wondered if she was sleeping or not. He supposed they were legitimately together, but he could still see it in her body language her hurt towards what was happening with Hunter, therefore he never even dreamed of overstepping any boundaries. Sighing softly, he shifted in the cramped bed, facing the wall. How he longed to feel her in his arms at night, or to kiss her until he felt all of her insecurities fade away. Shutting his eyes, he allowed himself some time to think of everything that _will_ be with Stephanie, and soon enough sleep overcame him, leading him into a pleasant unconsciousness.


	14. Chapter 14

SMACKDOWN TAPING – TLC THIS SUNDAY

Kane sat in his locker room, feet kicked up on another steel chair as he watched Seth partake in a match. The contract signing was up next, and he was laying low around those in the backstage area, not wanting to let them know he was perfectly fine.

A quick knock on his door caused him to sigh and remove himself from his comfortable position, "Who is it?"

"It's Stephanie"

Kane smiled, his tensions easing at the mention of who it was, "Come in."

A second later Stephanie opened the door and stepped into the small locker room, a smile on her face as she saw Kane sitting in front of the small screen, watching Seth's match. Already clad in his suit and tie, she waltzed over taking a seat beside him. Studying his face, she noticed he had a calm facial expression, and she wondered what he was thinking about. However, she didn't want to worry him so she quickly pulled out the things he needed for tonight.

"Kane, time to put this on." She smiled hearing him groan in annoyance.

"Do I have to?"

"Yes, you have to. Like we both decided last week, you need to show them you're still hurt. You need them to believe you won't be able to perform up to your standards on Sunday. Plus, it's just for a couple of minutes."

He sighed, running a hand over his face, "Fine, just get it over with."

She giggled and unrolled some gauze padding for the "bruise" on his forehead. Tugging him forward until he was close enough she wrapped it around his head making sure it wasn't fit too tight. Sensing the closeness between them at their current positions, she couldn't help but stare into his blue eyes. She didn't realize he was leaning closer until their lips met and it was then she realized they had to be out for the contract signing within the next few minutes.

Nudging his chest, she weakly attempted to break the kiss, but he wasn't having any of that. To be honest, he and Stephanie hadn't done much 'couple' stuff since that one day in his office. But he promised himself he wouldn't do anything more until both of them were ready. Going to grab her to keep her from pushing at him, he was startled out of his trance when a knock on the door rang out, a worker calling out it was time for the main event. He finally backed off and stood up, mumbling a short apology to Stephanie. Extending his hand out, he felt her grasp it. Pulling her up, he suddenly felt as if they were missing something,

"Steph where are the contracts?

He was already being led out of his locker room by her without an answer to the question first, "Hunter has them. They're probably already out there waiting and set up."

A groan left his mouth at the mere thought of having to face Hunter and the rest of the Authority. After what happened on Monday, he had no clue what tricks they had up their sleeves this time around. Reaching the gorilla with her, he glanced at the monitor hanging beside the curtain. It was just Hunter and Seth out there at the moment, and Seth was, of course, sprawled out in the chair acting like his usual spoiled self. As his music hit, he and Stephanie walked out to a pretty loud pop, but it didn't last. While walking to the ring, Kane still wondered if he was to grab the belt this Sunday if he would be booed out of the building.

Cautiously approaching the steps, he paused as his eyes scanned around the ring, making sure he or Stephanie weren't about to get ambushed. When he didn't see anything out of the ordinary, he allowed Stephanie to head up into the ring as he followed behind. Feeling the icy glare coming from Hunter, he opted to busy himself with the contract sitting on the table placed in the ring.

Watching Kane and Stephanie stand there side by side irked Hunter to no end. To say he was feeling betrayed was much of an understatement, being Stephanie was supposed to be _his_ , not Kane's. He and Seth had done some scheming, and it was decided that Kane would not be leaving TLC on his feet. TLC matches were no DQ, hence interference from the Authority would definitely be a part of the big plan.

Bringing the mic to his lips, he began to speak, "Kane. Seth. It's time for both of you to sign the contract for this Sunday. I don't want any funny business. Save it for TLC."

Heading to sign it, Kane wanted to get out as fast as possible. He didn't have a good feeling about this whole thing. Picking up the pen placed on the table, he bent down and scribbled his name on the line where he was assigned. Tossing the pen down, he backed up a bit and waited impatiently for Seth to sign. His eyes narrowed down onto Seth as his free arm slid under the table. Kane's eyes widened in realization that there was something under the table. His arm shot out to push Stephanie back as Seth flipped the table onto its side, and as the black cloth covering the table fell, it revealed an axe handle.

He turned his head to the side, seeing Stephanie had paled, "Go. I got this."

Looking at Kane apprehensively, she didn't want to leave him. She knew he was outnumbered already and with the weapon in hand he didn't have much of a chance.

"GO! Now!"

His voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she quickly fled the ring. Out of the corner of his vision he saw Hunter lunging for him, and before he could move he felt a sharp pain go through his groin as he was nailed by Hunter's knee. Crying out in pain he was held back by Hunter as he was yanked over to face Seth, who was spinning the axe handle in his hands, cackling maniacally.

"Oh, Kane. You really messed up, buddy."

Kane watched in slow motion as Seth brought the weapon back behind him, aiming towards Kane's abdomen. Within seconds he flung his head back, cracking Hunter on the nose and he was released just as the wood struck Hunter. Hearing Hunter's own yelp of pain and seeing Seth's shocked face allowed Kane to slide out of the ring and he felt Stephanie wrapping her arms around him and tugging him up to the ramp.

Hunter was flailing about in blind fury. Blood was spewing freely out of his nostrils, staining his white shirt. Staggering to his feet he started screaming and heading towards the ropes to go after Kane. He was being held back by a pair of arms, and he turned his attention to Seth, "Hunter! Knock it off and save it for Sunday!" Turning towards the ramp, he saw red as Kane and Stephanie had their arms wrapped around each other, and they were backing up on the ramp.

Staring down at both Kane and Stephanie, he was putting an end to this come the conclusion of Sunday. He swore to himself that he would do anything in his power to get rid of both Stephanie and Kane.


	15. Chapter 15

Fidgeting with his tie, Kane paced around the locker room. His match against Seth Rollins was up next and he felt his nerves paralyzing his entire being. Of all the past times he was involved in the title match, he knew he wasn't going to win. He knew he just didn't have it in him to strive to get the belt, but now… this was different. He had Stephanie backing him up every step of the way, he had a real _reason_ to want to win this.

He spun around sensing someone was behind him and he breathed in relief seeing it was Stephanie. She had a red shirt on to match his own red tie he would soon be taking off for the match.

"We're out soon. Are you ready?"

Kane chuckled, shaking his head a bit, "No, but this is it. I've got to be ready."

Stephanie nodded and took a seat on the small bench as she watched him fix up his suit in the mirror adorning the brick wall. She saw a look of nervousness on his face, and she really couldn't blame him. He hadn't been involved in the main event for the title in a few years, and he surely hadn't had his career on the line or his wellbeing as much as now. She had to admit she was quite nervous as well. After seeing Hunter lose it during the contract signing on Smackdown she was sure he would be calling for backup multiple times tonight.

The time eventually came when a backstage worker informed both Kane and Stephanie of the countdown until they were to report to the entrance to the ring. Stephanie looked at Kane after they left, and she saw him standing there with his eyes closed. Getting up and quietly walking behind him she wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his shoulder,

"You got this. I believe in you."

Opening his eyes, he saw her from the reflection in the mirror. Somewhere deep down inside of him, he knew he could do this. He knew he could go out there and make it a match worth watching. How would he do that? He didn't know.

…

Locking up with Seth, Kane shoved him off with force, watching the young man stumble and fall backwards. Backing up as Seth rose to his feet, they both glanced up at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship dangling from the limp hook it was attached to. Lights were illuminating it, giving it a spiritual-like glow. Turning his attention to Seth, the pair locked up again, and the beginning of a standstill ensued until Kane got the upper hand again, grabbing Seth's arm and wringing it behind his back. Suddenly Seth spun out and grabbed Kane's arm, attempting to perform the same move. Growling out, he strained his muscles, refusing to let Seth execute the grapple. Quickly yanking him back around he nailed him with an uppercut, causing him to back up into the corner.

Going after Seth, Kane nailed him with a few more punches until Seth cowered and shoved him backwards. Heading back on the offensive, he grabbed Seth by the neck and launched him across the ring. _That_ shocked Seth. He took a second to breathe as he watched him roll out of the ring and throw a fit outside. Pacing inside the ring, he watched intensely as Seth disappeared under the ring, clearly looking for a weapon. _It's a little early for weapons, isn't it?_ Kane thought to himself. Before he could process any more thoughts he felt a sharp sting of a steel chair piercing his back as he stumbled forward. He saw a flurry of black pants and shoes and the voices of Jamie and Joey surround him.

Glancing up he saw Seth sliding back into the ring with another steel chair. The chair smacked against the canvas, Kane's mind going back to when he was assaulted by the rest of the Authority. He suddenly felt Jamie and Joey grabbing his arms, attempting to hold him down. He saw Seth approaching with the chair, poised to attack, but he was too strong for both J&J, and he shot his arms out, tossing both smaller men away from him. Getting back to his feet he was able to dodge a chair shot by Seth, and he quickly lunged forward, both forearms plowing into the chair and smashing Seth in the face. Grabbing the chair off of the ground, he rammed it into Seth's midsection, hearing him grunting in pain and falling to his knees.

Raising the chair again, he felt someone from behind pulling it from his grasp. Turning around he saw Joey paling in the face as he held the chair in his hands. Dropping it he tried to flee but Kane reached a hand out, grabbing the fabric of Joey's shirt. Yanking him back towards him he spun him around and his hand gripped his small throat. Getting ready to pick him up, he saw Jamie rushing in on him and with ease he caught him by the throat as well. As he was going to lift them, he saw his vision go white when Seth struck him in the back with a steel chair. Dropping both Jamie and Joey, they fled the ring, and before he could get his attention turned to Seth, another shot struck him in the back. Falling to a knee, he counted three more before falling forward onto the canvas. Another four came before he could feel the welts already forming.

Laying there on the mat, he heard Seth setting up a ladder in the middle of the ring, taking his time. Mustering up some strength he pushed himself up onto his hands and he looked up seeing Seth beginning to scale the ladder. Staggering to his feet he took a few quick strides to reach the ladder, and he grabbed Seth by his pants, tugging him down. When he landed back onto the ground, Kane kicked him in the gut, and pounded his arm on his back, knocking him to his knees. He turned and hit the opposite ropes, running towards Seth and he lifted his foot to kick him in the head. He watched as he rolled out of the ring, laying on the ground.

Leaving the ring, he grabbed a table and shoved it back under the ropes. Sliding into the ring he quickly set it up beside the ladder. Glancing outside the ring he still saw Seth rolling around in pain, clutching his head. A smirk graced his lips as he began his ascent up the ladder. The crowd piped up in cheers the closer Kane got, but boos began as Joey scrambled opposite up the ladder. Kane growled, anger apparent once again as Joey's head appeared, and right beside him was Jamie. His eyes flicked to the table beside the ladder, and he heard the crowd increasing their cheers again. His arms flew forward as he grabbed both Jamie and Joey by their throats, and he saw fear in their eyes as they flailed about trying to break free from his grasp. Jerking both his arms to the side, he launched both men off the ladder and crashing down onto the table. The arena erupted in cheers at the carnage, and Kane went to grab the belt. Feeling the hook touch his hands, he went to tug it down but he screamed out when he felt Seth nail him in the back of the knee with a kendo stick.

A whack from the kendo stick caused Kane to stumble down the ladder, landing onto the mat. Upon impact his knee buckled and he fell to it. Another swipe of the weapon landed across his lower back, and he jerked forward, trying to get away from Seth. Rolling out of the ring just in time, he grabbed his back in agony, stumbling over to lean on the commentator's table. It was only a few seconds later when he was attacked by Seth. Being pummeled into the ground, he covered up until he felt the kicking ease up. Hearing Seth tearing apart the commentator's table, he got back up to his feet, heading towards Seth before he was put through the table.

Grabbing Seth, he jerked back when he was hit with a spray of water from a water bottle. Wiping his eyes, he went back to the table for support. Shaking his head free from the water, he heard the fans around him erupt in anticipated cheers and he turned to see Seth flying off of the top turnbuckle. Evading the aerial attack at the last second, he fell to the ground as Seth collided with the table, causing it to collapse. His eyes widened seeing the position that Seth crumpled into after the collision, but he couldn't wait any longer.

Clambering back into the ring, Kane reached the ladder and for the second time attempted to climb it. Reaching about midway he saw a flash of a large moving object. Turning his head, he was met with Big Show's fist connecting with his jaw. His vision blurred as he fell forward off of the ladder and landing in the ring in the leftover table scraps.

Coming to his senses, he struggled to sit up and he blinked a few times. Looking around he saw Seth slowly making his way up the ladder with Big Show cheering him on from the ramp. Knowing he wasn't going down without a fight, he got back to his feet and he began to scale the ladder as well. Reaching Seth on the opposite side. He shot his fist forward, knocking Seth down a few rungs. Reaching up for the title, he felt Seth's hand connect with his abdomen. Stepping down, he and Seth traded more blows until he grabbed Seth by his hair and whacked his face against the top of the ladder. Going up another rung he grabbed Seth's arm, throwing it over his neck as he used his other hand to grab the man by the waistband of his pants. Hoisting him up, he felt time slow down as he watched images of the crowd, then the belt then falling down from the ladder suplexing Seth until both crashed into the mat.

Laying there, Kane felt pain searing his body, but he couldn't stop now. Rolling onto his hands and knees, he made his way towards the ropes and grabbed them, using the elasticity for support in helping him up. He noticed Seth was beginning to stir as well, and he knew he wouldn't make it up the ladder in time. Exiting the ring, he shoved another table under the ropes as well as a ton of chairs. Sliding back into the ring he set the table up and he set a couple of the steel chairs onto it. Picking up an extra one he turned as he saw Seth crawling on his hands and knees, attempting to scramble away. Looking around he saw no sign of anyone else from the Authority, and he knew he had to make his move.

Lifting the chair up he slammed it down onto Seth's back, hearing him yelping in pain. Repeating that same process another couple of times, he noticed the chair had bent. Tossing it aside, he saw Seth rolling out of the ring again. _This is my chance!_ Heading back to the ladder, he began to scale it, but only after the first rung he felt his knee start to bother him again. The pain was nearly unbearable as he reached the next rung and he had to use his hands to pull himself up. Suddenly the entire ladder jerked backwards making him grip it with all his strength. He peeked between the rungs to see Seth had shoved another ladder between the ropes and attaching it to the one currently set up in the ring. He watched in shock as Seth jumped onto the top rope, then maneuver onto the ladder and make his way across towards to the title. Clawing and scraping his way up the ladder, Kane saw Seth on his toes reaching up to grab the belt that was attached to the hook. He used his long reach to punch Seth in the gut, making him stumble a bit. He grabbed him by his belt, trying to yank him down. When that didn't work, he stepped up another rung himself, leaving both of them teetering on the very top of the ladder. Kane landed a few more punches until Seth was wobbling, and he looked up before his hand connected with Seth's jaw, catching him off guard. Grabbing Seth's leg, he leaned forward and lifted it over his shoulder, and he was able to do the same with the other one. Kane felt Seth clutching helplessly to his head, his fists pounding on his back but doing nothing to stop him from powerbombing him several feet down onto the ladder. A loud, sickening crack rang out throughout the arena, almost masking the thousands of cheers from the audience. Kane panted heavily, staring down at Seth's body which had broken the horizontal leaning ladder into two.

His head lifted up as he saw the title dangling there, daring him to grab it. Reaching with his hand, he grasped the belt and with one final tug it came lose, sliding onto the ladder and staring up at him in all its gold glory. The final bell rung, signaling the end of the match and Kane stood there atop the ladder, feeling as if he was in a dream and would be waking up at any moment. Holding the belt with an iron grip he moved himself so he was sitting on top of the ladder and he placed the belt in his lap, staring down at it. The different colored gems glistened under the lighting, shining into his eyes and he shook his head slowly, realization of the moment he was having finally striking him. Feeling overwhelmed with emotions he lifted the belt up and he leant his forehead on it, and at the same time he heard his ring pyro go off, turning the arena red. Suddenly he picked up a chant that was being echoed throughout the entire crowd,

"YOU DESERVE IT!"

"YOU DESERVE IT!"

"YOU DESERVE IT!"

Lifting his head, he began his descent down the ladder, never once letting the belt out of his sight. Glancing around the arena he saw tons of the fans on their feet clapping and cheering for him, and he couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe this had finally happened. He turned towards the ramp, hearing cheers coming from that way and his face broke into a smile seeing Stephanie rushing towards the ring. Seconds after her getting into the ring he opened his arms up for her letting her run into them.

Wrapping them around her he heard her whisper in his hear, "You earned this, Kane. I'm so proud of you."

Remaining in the embrace with Stephanie, he was about to pull away to lead her to the back when he heard Triple H's theme song hit. Breaking apart, he looked down the ramp to see Hunter coming out, red faced in anger and stripping himself of his jacket and tie.

Reaching the ring, Hunter watched Kane step in front of Stephanie, blocking her from whatever plans he had. Stomping up the stairs he wasted no time stepping into the ring and getting in Kane's face,

"FUCK YOU, YOU'RE GOING TO REGRET THIS!"

Hunter lunged forward, his hands smacking Kane's chest and shoving him backwards, almost knocking Stephanie down. Kane stumbled but remained upright, but he was too little too late as Hunter shoved past him and went right for Stephanie. Dropping the belt, he went to go for Hunter but he felt another stab of pain in his knee as Joey and Jamie reappeared and targeted his bad knee, knocking him down. Attempting to get back up he was held down by both J&J, and he was helpless to save Stephanie.

He watched, horrified, as Hunter stalked towards her, getting uncomfortably close to her that he could see it in her eyes that she wanted him gone. Before he could do or say another word he felt his heart drop into his stomach as Hunter had Stephanie in his grasp and he easily had her in the position for the pedigree. Trying to break free from the clutches of Joey and Jamie, he wasn't able to from the pain being emitted by his knee. That was, until he watched Hunter pedigree Stephanie onto a steel chair that had he had previously used to attack Seth with.

Seeing nothing but red, he felt adrenaline course through his veins, and he felt nothing but anger and hatred towards Hunter. Stepping up he shoved off Jamie so hard he fell through the ropes and onto the floor, and he grabbed Joey by the scruff of his neck and launched him across the ring into the broken ladder. Turning his attention towards Hunter and Stephanie, he saw Hunter was attempting to flee by making his way through the broken tables, chairs and ladders scattered around ringside. Rushing out of the ring, Kane felt no pain as he grabbed Hunter from behind, yanking the back of his shirt with so much force it knocked Hunter clean off his feet and tumbling back-first into the ground.

Looking around he grabbed a kendo stick laying on the ground and he turned towards Hunter, who was still trying to shake the whiplash out of his system. Spinning the stick in his hands, he brought it over his head before smashing it down onto Hunter's shirt-clad back. Hearing him yelp out in agony only fueled Kane more as he repeatedly smashed the weapon against anything it touched on his body. Eventually it snapped, and he tossed it aside and headed to grab the steel stairs.

Lifting the top set with ease, he waited until Hunter made it back to his feet and he ran full force at him, nailing him in the side of the body, and watching him fly backwards falling onto the ground. Tossing them aside, he panted heavily and he saw Hunter still trying to crawl away from him. Tilting his head as he watched Hunter's pathetic attempt to evade him, he went back to the other announcer's desk and he tore everything off of it. Heading in the direction of Hunter he bent down and grabbed him again by the back of the shirt and he yanked him up and pulled him back towards ringside. The arena erupted again in cheers as Kane tossed Hunter against the table, and the rebound against it caused him to walk straight into Kane's hand.

Tightening his hand around Hunter's neck, Kane used his other hand to grab him by the waistband of his pants and he lifted him up quickly before slamming him into the table, another sickening sound echoed out as Hunter connected with it. Believing that Hunter would not get back up, Kane suddenly turned and rushed into the ring to tend to Stephanie, who was swarmed by medical personnel. Pushing them away, he bent down and shook her gently, whispering her name to try to get her to open her eyes.

A movement down below him caused him to look up, and he saw Hunter staggering off of the table, trying to use anything as support to get him away from the ring. Laying Stephanie back down for the medics he got back out of the ring and he tugged the apron up, searching for the weapon that would ultimately end Hunter's career.

Approaching Hunter's stumbling body, Kane gripped the sledgehammer in his hands as he flew forward, pegging Hunter in the lower back with it. Hearing another shout of agony, Kane wasted no time in spinning Hunter around to face him, and again he hit Hunter with the weapon in the midsection. Seeing him drop to his knee, Kane looked between the sledgehammer and Hunter's head, and he gripped it tighter before rushing him and feeling it collide with his head.

Kane watched as Hunter's lifeless body lay on the ground beside the ring. Dropping the sledgehammer, he bent down and grabbed his hand, yanking him back over to the steel steps he had used a few minutes ago. Pulling Hunter up to his feet, he stepped up onto the steel steps, and he hoisted Hunter over his shoulder, setting him up for the tombstone. The arena erupted in deafening cheers as Kane dropped to his knees with Hunter, slamming him against the steel and hearing a loud, hollow thud as he hit them and dropped Hunter.

Backing up, Kane looked around, seeing Seth's body laying down outside by the barricade, Joey and Jamie were sprawled out in random areas of the ring, and Hunter's body was battered and bloodied after his vicious assault. Feeling nothing but satisfaction flowing through him, he felt _alive._ After all those years of being told he wasn't a monster, after being told he was nothing but a loser, someone who wouldn't amount to anything, he finally was able to break those statements. He was finally able to unleash the demon he had kept chained up for so long.

Turning his attention back to the ring, his eyes lit up as he saw Stephanie moving around and sitting up on her own. Sliding into the ring, he bent down beside her and without saying a word he lifted her up in his arms. Pivoting on his feet, he also retrieved his belt, draping it over his shoulder. Making his way out of the ring, he headed up the ramp, listening to the crowd applauding and giving both him and Stephanie a standing ovation.

Kane had done it. He had destroyed the Authority.


	16. Author's Note

Hey guys, if you have been wondering if the story has concluded, it has **NOT**!

I've been struggling trying to find some motivation to keep it going... Stephanie NOT picking Kane as the RAW GM didn't help much, or the fact that Kane is barely showing up on Smackdown these days.

It's rough. It's saddening to me that WWE had a great opportunity to allow Kane and Steph to work together, or at LEAST give Kane a minor role where he's on TV weekly without being bashed and it didn't happen. Of course it didn't happen. Sometimes I question why I thought it would happen in the first place.

I can never be happy, can I?

Anyway, enough about my sappy feelings. I do have a question pertaining to this story and I would appreciate some feedback;

Would you guys like more Kane/Steph behind the wrestling/main storyline? I know I have kind of drifted away from that for the better half of the story, and I am thinking of incorporating more of that pairing as well as keeping up with the larger story. What do you guys want? Please let me know, thanks!

-BigRedCorporate


	17. Chapter 16

Loud, red-hot fire burst from the ramp as the beginning chords of Kane's music hit the arena. A few seconds later he walked out to deafening cheers mixed in with some boos from the audience that were in attendance for Monday Night Raw. Shifting the belt that was slung over his shoulder, he stood there, drinking in the sight before him. Standing beside him was Stephanie, clad in a dazzling black and red dress.

The entire arena was draped in a dark red glow, much like he was used to when he began all those years ago. However, a bright light shone on him as he was standing on the ramp, making sure to illuminate the belt. An eerie reddish smoke came out from under his feet, engulfing him and Stephanie.

His eyes shifted towards the ring hearing Lillian Garcia's voice ring out, "Ladies and Gentlemen, your _NEWWW_ WWE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, KAAAANE!"

A tiny smirk appeared on his face as he began his descent to the ring. The belt jiggled as he walked, reminding him each step that he earned this, and he wasn't going to let anyone ruin his moment. Taking slower than usual, he attempted to walk off the limp in his step from the brutal beating he received the night before at the hands of the Authority. However, the burning sensation in the back of his knee was badgering him and making a jolt of pain go up the side of his body with each step, becoming more noticeable.

After the match had concluded and him and Stephanie had retreated to the doctor's room, both were checked out for any threatening injuries. Stephanie had sustained a bruise to the head after the pedigree while Kane's were a bit more complex. Not only was his knee giving him a hard time, but his back was tweaked as well. The doctor had warned Kane to wrap himself up in bandages to prevent any further harm, and while he did listen to the doctor, nobody could see the absence of the wrappings due to his suit covering up his upper body. He and Stephanie were very thankful that he had not been permanently injured or else he would have been stripped of the belt and everything that he had worked for would have been taken away from him in the blink of an eye.

Stepping into the ring, he limped around a bit, listening to the crowd and seeing signs littered around with his name displayed on them. Taking a mic from a ringside worker, he held it as the lights focused back on him, accentuating the belt on his shoulder. Bringing the mic to his mouth, he heard the noise rise again as another couple of chants made their way to his ears;

"YOU DESERVE IT!"

"THANK YOU, KANE!"

For a split second, he almost broke down into tears, never having heard this much support from the crowd in so many long, treacherous years. The only thing he could remember was being told to retire, being told he was never good enough, being called vulgar names, everyone trying to bring him down, but now they were cheering him. Biting his cheek to keep his emotions in check, he felt Stephanie tug on his arm. Glancing down at her, she had a smile on her face that would have lit up the entire arena just as it did to him at that very second.

Leaning up so her lips were pressed against his ear, she whispered,

"It's okay, take your time. Everyone is here to see you and what you have to say. You're the new face of WWE, Kane. Enjoy it."

A quick nod at her statement prompted him to bring the mic back to his mouth once again, it was only a matter of seconds before the words started coming out of his mouth,

"For years and years and years I was told I would never make it. I was told I would never amount to anything other than Undertaker's baby brother. That nobody would care for me once we went our own ways. There was a time when I believed them. I believed that I wasn't good enough, I believed I was never going to amount to anything other than a _loser,_ someone second best. I was _always_ the guy everyone counted on to make a fool of himself in regards to making everyone else look better. The worst part? I listened to them. I listened to their lies, their fabricated plans and words. I was told it was all for one, and one for all. Nobody left behind. _I_ was left behind. _I_ was left to pick up the pieces. _I_ was left a shattered, broken shell of the monster I once was. No matter what I did, I couldn't please anyone. I couldn't please any of you, I couldn't please colleagues, bosses, friends, you name it. _I. Was. A. Failure_."

Staring down at his polished black shoes, Kane knew he should stop, but he didn't want to. All of the feelings he had kept bottled up inside of him over the last decade were finally splintering and piercing him, and with every word he was coming closer to feeling a sense of closure, a sense of belonging.

"When the opportunity arose where I could finally cease the disappointed looks, the head shakes, the little whispers of criticism I heard behind my back, I took it. No longer was I going to be the background man, the one everyone thinks only as second fiddle. The one where I put my _own_ career in jeopardy to make everyone else look good! _I've had enough of that!"_

Kane's booming voice startled Stephanie, and she watched as he stood there in the middle of the ring, hand poised and moving around to exaggerate his points. What he was saying shocked her. She really had no clue it was this bad for him. Sure, she had seen plenty of times how he never wanted the spotlight, and would constantly make sure everyone else looked good before him. When she finally thought that him joining the Authority would help him, it only harmed him. She watched him lose every week getting pummeled into the mat while Hunter always remained on top with Seth. She knew now that so many of Kane's old tag partners and those he paired with only took advantage of him, and the pain was showing through crystal clear. Even in the Authority he was taken advantage of and made to be the weak link.

Thinking back to what Hunter said to Kane, that he was the most loyal man in the Authority, she couldn't help but wonder if that was just a ploy to keep Kane sane, and to keep him in the Authority, taking the brunt of the beatings or if he really meant it.

"I put forth everything I had left to give in that match last night with Seth Rollins, and I'm proud to say that I showed everyone that I could do it. I silenced the haters, I silenced my colleagues and doubters. Most of all, I silenced those demons in my head. The ones telling me I wasn't good enough, telling me I wouldn't be able to take the title, telling me I would retire just as irrelevant as everyone says I am."

Lowering the mic, Kane gripped the title, the leather grazing his fingers as he lifted it in the air, showing everyone once again that this was real, and he was standing before them as the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

Applauding along with most of the audience, Stephanie approached Kane, and as he lowered the belt back onto his shoulder she took the mic from his hand and smiled as he stood there stoically, his face a bit flushed from his emotional speech.

Trying to think of something to say, Stephanie fell short of words. She couldn't describe the prideful feelings towards Kane and his courage to stand there and say all that he said. Shaking her head, all she could manage was,

"I'm so proud of you."

Dropping the mic, she turned to Kane, a smile on her face as she straightened up his tie and jacket before leaning up and giving him a kiss on his lips.

Breaking away Kane whispered for Stephanie to get near him and she nodded backing up only a bit and she watched him lift his arms up, one hand gripping the belt before bringing them down, causing an explosion. Fire erupted from the ring posts as the arena was doused in heat. His music began again as he led her to the ropes, holding them open for her exit as he followed behind her.

Walking up the ramp Kane felt like he let a weight off his chest. For the first time in so long he was able to be himself for once and go off on whatever had been bugging him. He was also holding the gold, which made it all the better.

He suddenly felt a small, delicate hand grasp his and he looked over seeing Stephanie was walking closely beside him. She turned and gave him another small smile before reaching the ramp.

Stopping on the ramp he looked around the arena once more before tightening his hand around Stephanie's and lifting both their entwined hands and the belt in his other, the arena erupted once again for the couple.

 **Whew, that was emotional for me to write. I was going full forward on Kane being a babyface, but after some consideration I figured that him being a tweener will work out better. Let's be honest, if he ever became WWE WHC and was given leeway to get everything off his chest, he'd definitely (want to, I hope) tear into the fans for treating him like shit then suddenly cheering for him. I tried not to make him sound douchey, and keep that tweener/face aura.** **Of course, there's also the questionable "backstage politics" surrounding his career and how much he's lost/opportunities refused, etc., that I included in his speech, which I found to be fitting. Once again, this is something I expect from him if he won the title this late in his career.**

 **Also thanks for all of you who did respond to my previous question, especially MoongooseVox. It was a thorough review that really got me thinking into those questions and what can/will happen as the story progresses! Thanks so much for all of you who read this!**


	18. Chapter 17

Making his way back to his locker room, Kane thought about what he had said out in the ring. Something had come over him that very second, and all those words pouring out of mouth couldn't be stopped. Rarely had he had the chance to go out there on his own time and let everyone know exactly how he was feeling. He already knew how much shit he has been in just by beating all of the Authority in one night, but that didn't matter to him. All that mattered was that he was WWE's top champion, and he had Stephanie by his side.

As he was walking someone called his name out, prompting him to turn in that direction. Coming his way was a stagehand with a clipboard, the man looked to be quite young, maybe an intern. Giving the young man a small smile, he listened to him drone on about how big a fan he was and he had been rooting for him ever since he began watching. Suddenly the man stopped and blushed, mumbling an apology to Kane before looking at the clipboard.

"Sir, I was informed to tell you that you have a match tonight."

That was odd, Kane thought Stephanie told him he didn't have anything tonight except some photo shoots and a few promos to give.

"With whom am I supposed to be wrestling?"

"Well, sir, um, it says here you have to face a member of the Authority."

Shaking his head, Kane just sighed. Wasn't it bad enough, they got involved in his match with Seth, now they will be tailing his ass until he drops the title back to one of them? Giving the stagehand a small, curt nod Kane turned and walked off to his locker room hoping to find Stephanie there.

Entering his locker room, he saw Stephanie sitting on the couch looking through something on her phone.

"I thought I wasn't facing anyone tonight?"

Glancing up, she sighed softly along with a shake of her head,

"I'm sorry, Kane. I thought that too. Seth and Hunter aren't here, so I'm assuming you have to wrestle the Big Show again."

Letting out an audible groan, he sank onto the couch beside Stephanie. The belt slipped off of his chest and settled on his lap, staring up at him. Studying the intricately placed diamonds and gems, his eyes followed the pattern until he reached the nameplates on the side that were designed with fire and a giant stitched 'K' coming through them. It wasn't much, but Kane thought they were perfect for him.

Suddenly a noise caught his attention and he lifted his head towards the monitor and they were replaying last night's pay per view highlights. He heard the commentators spluttering and jumbling their words as he powerbombed Seth through the ladder, ultimately grabbing the belt. He listened to their genuinely shocked voices and he saw the first few rows of fans in the crowd pause for a few seconds. There was a part of him that relished in the genuine shock on everyone's faces because he knew that he threw them all a curveball, but another part of him couldn't be silenced as it bugged him that nobody ever thought he could do this.

Leaning back on the couch, he sighed softly, tilting his head back until it rested against the cushion. Not more than a few seconds later he felt Stephanie lean against him and mimic his sigh with one of hers. The couple sat in silence for a while until the time came where he had promotional photos to take as well as preparing for his match.

Xxx

Black tape tightened around Kane's wrist as he watched Stephanie finish prepping him for the match. Neither knew who he would be facing, but the logical choice was Big Show. Kane hoped that he wouldn't have to feud with the big man too long in fear of boring the crowd. He had been the victim of plenty of fans and backstage backlash from just being out ringside during Seth's matches, so he wanted to give the fans something to look forward to each night.

A soft kiss on his cheek caught his attention and he looked back down at Stephanie seeing her wrapping the leftover tape up and tossing it into his duffel bag. Tightening up the tape with his hand, Kane was handed his elbow pads which he then slipped on, and he touched the thick wrappings around his waist that were supposed to be protecting his back. Yeah, he was pretty banged up from last night, but that wouldn't stop him from competing. He refused to let himself down, or anyone else that was rooting for him.

"Are you all ready for tonight?"

He pursed his lips, thinking for a few seconds, "Yeah, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

A small nod in response urged Kane to maneuver past Stephanie and pick up the belt sitting atop a table. Smiling a bit, he still felt as if he was dreaming, and if he was dreaming he never wanted to wake up.

Approaching the gorilla, Kane turned to Stephanie, "I just want to thank you… for everything. Without… you know… that happening, neither of us would be here."

Stephanie smiled, rarely did Kane get emotional and seldom did he express what he was feeling to anyone other than himself. She was honored to be the one he was able to talk so openly. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she hugged him the best she could given the small space they were in. Hearing someone call out that he was on in a few seconds prompted her to pull away. Taking her hand in his much larger one, he took a deep breath and when his pyro struck, both of them headed out from behind the curtain.

Heading to the ring, Kane let go of Stephanie's hand while she made her way to the commentator's table, and he saw her standing there and clapping for him. Fighting his urge to smile, he got into the ring and lifted the belt for the crowd to take in. Lowering the belt as his music came to a stop, he stared at it in his hand before passing it off to Stephanie. She flashed him another smile which he did manage to return this time before he heard Kevin Owens' theme hit the arena.

Taking a deep breath, Kane turned and saw Kevin walking out much to the crowd's enjoyment. This kid's in the Authority, now? Shaking his head, he paced back and forth in the corner watching Owens make his way to the ring.

Upon entering, Kevin walked right up to Kane and pointed towards Stephanie and the title she was holding in her hands,

"That title. That's mine. You don't have a chance against any of us when you're public enemy number one around here."

Grunting in amusement and agitation, Kane took another step forward, staring down the smaller man,

"I'd like to see you try."

With a quickness Kane didn't see coming, Owens had him backed up into the corner within seconds. Getting his bearings back, he uppercut Owens and grabbed him by the neck, pushing himself out of the corner before turning and tossing Owens into it. Attacking Owens with a flurry of fists and slaps, the referee finally had to yank Kane away for a few seconds. Watching Owens angrily throw a fit as he made his way out of the corner, Kane nailed him in the face with a big boot. Owens dropped like a hot plate onto the mat while Kane backed up, hitting the ropes and using the momentum to land a kick on Owens' midsection. Repeating that, Kane stopped after the third one and bent down, grabbing Owens by the hand and tugging him upwards until he was settled on his knees. He watched as Owens slowly rose, and he hit the ropes once more, surging forward and DDTing him right back down into the mat.

Lying there panting softly, Kane quickly went for the cover. Hooking Owens' leg, he kicked out shortly after. Sighing in agitation, Kane stood and brought Owens back up to his feet. Maneuvering the man so he was latched onto Kane, he attempted a suplex, but Owens' fist connected with Kane's midsection, causing the older man to cry out in pain. Taking advantage of that second of vulnerability, Kane felt himself being lifted and suplexed down onto the mat. The second his back hit the mat he arched up while another strangled scream made its way out of his mouth.

Hurrying to remain on the offensive, Owens went right to Kane's tweaked back, landing a couple of knees right down on it. Every yelp of pain only spurred Owens on as he tore the wrappings from Kane's back and let them flutter down outside the ring. Seeing a large bruise splotched with red only caused Owens to laugh as he bent down, jamming his knee into the area and he grabbed below Kane's jaw and grabbed his foot, falling onto his back and causing Kane to arch in an uncomfortable angle.

Grunting in pain, Kane attempted to make his way out of the painful submission, but it seemed every time he moved, he only caused himself to be in more pain. Owens' taunting voice only pissed Kane off more, and he knew he had to make it to the ropes or else his back might not hold out much longer.

Scratching and clawing his way to the rope, Kane eventually managed to grab onto the bottom one causing a break, and Owens eventually released his grip on Kane. Moaning in pain he slid out of the ring and onto his hands and knees, trying to gather the strength to power through. Crawling towards the barricade, he gripped it and pulled himself up and out of the corner of his eye he saw Owens approaching him rather quickly.

Without having a second to react, he attempted to throw a punch at Owens, but it did nothing and he felt himself being lifted once again and his entire backside rammed into the top of the barricade.

Falling down onto the ground in a crumpled heap, Kane felt as if his back was on fire. Struggling to make it to his knees, he watched Owens speeding towards him again, and he managed to sidestep him from the pain being emitted from his lower back which caused him to collapse back onto his knees. A loud crash from beside him from Owens falling over the barricade and into the timekeeper's area allowed Kane a few seconds to recuperate. Making his way back to the ring he pulled on the apron lifting himself up and he rolled into the ring, laying on his back.

He willed himself to sit up, and he slowly rose to his feet. He spotted Owens clambering out of the announcer's area and making his way back into the ring as well. Both men were spent from their brawl, and Kane knew he had to end this before his injuries became any worse. Going to grab Owens by his throat, he lifted him for a chokeslam, but his back gave out on him and he clumsily dropped him back down only to be shoved forward against the ropes. The momentum from him hitting the ropes caused him to run right into a pop-up powerbomb by Owens.

Screaming out in pain, Kane rolled to his side, his hand clutching helplessly at his back. Not even feeling the pain in his knee anymore, it all focused on his back. Wondering why he wasn't getting pinned, he noticed Kevin wasn't even in the ring anymore. Glancing out of the ring, he saw Kevin badgering someone by the timekeeper's area and he eventually snatched a steel chair.

Kane faintly heard Stephanie's voice telling him to get out of the ring and just leave but Kane couldn't do that. He wasn't going to run like Seth did. He was going to face whatever challenges lay in front of him, and if he went down, at least he went down fighting. Grabbing the ropes for support, he saw Kevin slide into the ring with the chair, ready to hit. As the metal glint of the chair caught Kane's eye, he dropped again and watched as it smacked against the ropes and flew out of Kevin's hands.

Taking the chance to capitalize, Kane whipped Owens around and grabbed him by the throat, lifting him and quickly slamming him down into the mat. Dropping he hooked Owens' leg and listened as the one-two-three count made its way to his ears. The next sound he heard was the bell ringing and his music.

Within seconds he felt Stephanie by his side and she had the belt in her hand, giving it to him to hold. Helping him stand, he suddenly laughed seeing Owens rolling out of the ring and dropping to the mat below while he stood tall in the ring. Raising his hands to do his pyro, a distinct voice rung out in the arena.

Lowering his arms slowly, Kane turned and saw Seth's face on the titantron in front of the arena.

"Hey! Hey Kane you piece of crap, that's MY title you STOLE from me last night! I worked my ass off to get that, and I'll be damned if everything I worked for myself will be taken from me!"

Seth's loud cackle soon made its way seconds after his statement,

"If I'm not mistaken, which I never am, you owe me a rematch for my title. I want that rematch next week. Triple H already approved."

Shaking his head, Kane knew he was in no shape to perform next Raw. Feeling a hand on his arm, Stephanie smiled mouthing to him that she will handle this. Nodding, he watched her go to take a microphone and she walked back over to Kane, facing Seth on the screen.

"Seth as far as Triple H is concerned, he has no authority over when and where the WWE World Heavyweight Championship will be defended. As far as rematches, you will get your rematch. Not next week, not the week after, but at the Royal Rumble."

The crowd erupted in cheers hearing Stephanie say that, and Kane smirked seeing Seth lose his temper.

"When I tell Triple H this he's gonna-"

"He's going to what, Seth? Fire us? Strip Kane of something he didn't do wrong? Like I said, he has very little power right now, and you had better get used to that."

Both Kane and Stephanie watched Seth grumble under his breath before turning to someone and screaming at them to turn the damn thing off. Eventually, the screen on the titantron went black, and Kane turned back to close out Raw with his pyro.


	19. Chapter 18

**The beginning of this chapter is strong T due to violence**

 _Broken heels clicked rapidly against the cement floor as Stephanie ran through a dark, musty hallway. She could faintly make out much more calculated, slower steps coming from behind her. How far away was he? She didn't know, nor did she care. She just wanted to get as far away from him as possible._

 _Stopping to jiggle the stiff handles of each doorway adorning the never-ending hallway, she struggled to find one that was open. His steps appeared louder, closer. Dashing away, she continued her way through the hallway, foregoing any sort of belief that a door would be unlocked for her to hide in._

 _She rounded a corner and in her line of sight was a sliver of light peeking out of a cracked door. Running as fast as her heels would take her, she flew into the room, shutting the door quickly behind her. As her eyes adjusted to the light she gasped, seeing the sight of Kane, bruised, bloodied and bound to a chair. Beside him was his championship title, covered in the blood that was dripping from the wound on his head. His muffled voice broke her out of her trance and she looked to see his mouth was covered with fabric. Wide eyes cautioned her to remain aware of what was going on and she nodded curtly, trying to find an object to help him out of his bindings. Trying to quietly search through the random cabinets littered throughout the dim room, she stilled when out of the corner of her eye she saw a bloody sledgehammer propped against the wall. Looking between the sledgehammer and Kane, she jumped when a loud bang on the door sounded throughout the room. A series of kicks eventually busted the door open and both Stephanie and Kane looked towards the intruder._

 _When Stephanie saw who the assailant was, her blood ran cold. There was a deranged look in the man's eyes, his white shirt was shredded and covered in blood and he was panting from the chase._

 _"You don't get away this time."_

 _Kane's muffled voice became louder and Stephanie could make out that he was trying to tell her to run. Turning on her heels, she attempted to shove past him, but he was much too large and much too fast and easily caught her with one arm. Throwing her back into the room with such force she tripped and landed on her hands, staring at him with fear in her eyes. He studied each of them with a look of pure disgust and contempt in his expression before turning his attention to the bloody sledgehammer resting against the wall. Stalking towards it, he gripped it with his calloused hand and turned back around to face Stephanie._

 _A smirk graced his face as he lifted the weapon and spun it around in his hands, "Isn't this a cute reunion? The Authority is back together..."_

 _His voice droned off as he tightened his grip on the handle of the sledgehammer and he approached Kane. Stephanie watched, paralyzed in shock as the man swung the sledgehammer, connecting with Kane's abdomen. Kane's loud scream in agony rung out and he pulled at the bindings keeping him to the chair, and the man only laughed darkly, clearly showing enjoyment in his actions. Spinning the weapon once more in his hands, he watched as Kane's bare abdomen turned an ugly shade of red to match the blood dripping down his face and pooling between his legs. Turning towards Stephanie, he noted her pale face which gave him even more pleasure. Tearing the fabric wrapped around Kane's mouth, he stared down at the weakened man and tauntingly slapped him, urging him to speak._

 _Kane looked up, staring Stephanie in the eyes, "Go. Get out of here. I love you. I'll be okay."_

 _Seconds after, he swung the sledgehammer again, watching it nail Kane in the head, knocking him out cold. Stephanie screamed, her body finally beginning to work and she stumbled up, trying to make it to the door. A large hand grabbed her by her hair and yanked her back down to the uncomfortable floor. She shrieked when he kicked her down so she was facing him, and he stared down at her with dark eyes._

 _"None of this would have happened if you just did what was best for business, Stephanie."_

 _Everything slowed down for her as he brought the sledgehammer back, his facial expression remaining cold. She let out one more scream as the weapon came towards her head, and everything went black._

Stephanie's eyes flew open and she shot up from her supine position in bed. Panting softly, she stared down at her trembling hands, which immediately went to her head, making sure everything was where it should be. Remembering Kane, she whipped her head over to the bed beside her, seeing that he was laying there quietly.

Slinking back under the covers she startled to hear Kane's soft voice, "Steph, are you okay?"

Looking over at him she could see through the darkness that he was sitting up in bed shifting so he was seated on the edge.

"I- I'm fine…"

He quirked an eyebrow, clearly having heard her whimpering and protesting in her sleep, "You don't sound fine."

"I'm fine. It was just a bad dream."

Sighing softly, Kane didn't want to tell her that for the last couple of nights he was woken up from her horrified shrieks, and instead opted to remain silent, listening to her ragged breathing.

Remaining seated on the side of the bed, he was about to go back to sleep when he heard her speak, "He killed us."

Frowning, Kane sat back up, confusion lacing his features.

"Who?"

"Hunter… he kidnapped you and he attacked me."

Hearing Stephanie's voice quiver as she spoke urged Kane to get out of his bed and walk the few steps to where she was laying in the other bed. Tentatively sitting beside her, he looked down seeing she was shaking and he began to see how much this thing with Hunter was affecting her. As far as he knew, the divorce between them was final a few hours before TLC began, and his eyes widened in the realization that all those nightmares she was having were from when he attacked her.

Laying a hand on her shoulder, he stroked his thumb across her arm, trying to think of anything to say that would make her feel better. He began to grow frustrated when no words came out of his mouth, and he felt as if he wasn't being helpful enough. He suddenly felt as if he wasn't good enough. Moving to get off the bed, he unexpectedly felt Stephanie's hand grasp his wrist.

"Please, don't go."

Swallowing thickly, he nodded and sank down onto the mattress, letting her shift to find a comfortable position against him. Wrapping his arm around her, he held her close while he attempted to comfort her.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head, wanting to forget every bit of that nightmare, "No, not now."

Tightening his arm around her, he used his fingers to stroke through her hair and at that time the flashbacks began bringing him back to that one time in his office when they first kissed. Chewing on his bottom lip, he glanced down, fighting any urges that were rising in him. A quick shake of his head was a failed attempt at trying to clear the thoughts. Tilting his head back against the cool headboard, he let his eyes slip shut and taking a deep breath in he relaxed. It didn't last long, however, when he felt Stephanie pressing kisses to his exposed neck. His eyes flew open in shock and his hand instinctively tightened in her hair, pulling her closer.

His mind was becoming cloudy the longer he was allowing her to do as she pleased with his neck, but a part of him was bugging him that this wasn't right, and she was in a vulnerable state. The first time was just testing the waters, but now? He didn't know what would transpire if he didn't know what she wanted.

"Steph…"

Gently halting her ministrations, he sat up straight, running a hand through his short hair.

"Is this what you want? I mean… I don't know if I… I-"

Growing irritated at his lack of confidence, he stopped speaking entirely and turned his attention to her, seeing how gorgeous she was in the pale lighting of the room.

Stephanie smiled, feeling more comfortable than she had ever felt in years being there with Kane. "Yes, there is nothing I want more."

A look of pure shock spread across his face at her statement. _What? Does she want a monster like me?_ Sitting there, her statement left an unspoken connection between them, and as her words began to sink into Kane's mind, he finally realized the entire extent of the situation they were in.

"Kane? Are you okay?"

Staring at her, he felt another side of him take over, and he knew that there was no turning back after this. Bringing his hand up, he laid it on her face, tracing her features with his fingertips before pulling her closer so he could kiss her.

Breaking apart, he quietly panted out, "I'm okay…"

Leaning over her, he gently pressed her back into the mattress, kissing her as he went down, "Everything will be okay."


	20. Chapter 19

Sunlight streaked through the blinds in the hotel room, targeting the large man lying in the small hotel room bed. The sheets were strewn carelessly over his naked body as he slept, rising and falling to the rhythm of his steady breathing. A strange tickling sensation spread across his chest, irritating his peaceful sleep. Trying to brush off whatever was bothering him, it was to no avail. A grunt of annoyance slipped past his lips as he tried once again to brush off whatever was bothering him. Attempting to turn away, he bumped into something solid beside him and his eyes flew open coming to the realization that it was Stephanie.

Panic struck him as his breath caught in his throat as memories of the night before reappearing in his head. _Fuck. Shit!_ Sitting up, Kane stared, wide eyed, at the sight below him. Fighting the urge to blush, he shut his eyes and turned his head away, not knowing what her reaction would be if she woke up to this. Turning so his feet were dangling over the edge of the bed, he searched frantically to find his pajama bottoms to slip on in case she didn't want to see him in all his entirety in the light. Picking his phone up, he checked the time and if there were any important messages. When there weren't any worth his time, he set it back down and stared down at his feet. There were a million thoughts going through his head and while he was trying to figure out what to say to Stephanie, he froze hearing her voice.

"Kane?"

Taking a deep breath, he slowly spun around to face her, seeing she was still completely covered by the sheets which immediately put him at ease. Looking at her hesitantly, he didn't know how to bring up the events that transpired last night, nor did he really want to. He put up a fake smile, hoping to convince her that he was fine. He saw that she didn't believe that for a second.

"Kane… about last night…"

Shaking his head, he forced another smile, "Just forget it, okay? It was a one-time thing; we should just move on from it."

Stephanie frowned, why was he saying that? She noticed his tense body language from the way he was refusing to sit down to talk about what had happened. She _thought_ he enjoyed last night, hell, she surely did, but the way he was acting now, it was as if he regretted it. Sighing softly, she sat up, making sure to keep the sheets covering her.

"What if I don't want to move on from it?"

Kane froze, staring at her with an incredulous look on his face. No. No way. There was no way in hell she would ever want to be with him after last night. He was nothing but a monster, and he definitely did not deserve all the kind things she said to him in the throes of passion. Shaking his head, he let out a long breath and sat beside her on the bed. There were so many doubts plaguing his mind that he was finding it difficult to even formulate a response for her. Opting to look down at his hands folded in his lap, he sat there in silence, allowing the demons in his head to taunt and mock him, trying to bring him deeper into his insecurities.

"I'm just a monster, Stephanie. You deserve better."

Staring at Kane, Stephanie didn't know what to say. The man she had all but confessed her love to was sitting there trying to persuade her to leave him, so he could bury himself deeper in his depressing thoughts. She had seen him go through this once before, but that was nearly fifteen years ago. When he was involved with Tori, he was absolutely smitten. He thought he found a woman who would love him for who he was, rather than what he looked like. She frowned, knowing it didn't last as she stabbed him in the back for X-Pac. She could recall the moment it happened, and as he stomped backstage she heard his wounded, wretched sobs come from under the mask while he made a beeline for the locker rooms. Coming back to reality, she saw him staring ahead, showing no sign of emotion on his face. Reaching out, she went to place her hand on his arm, but she startled when he shot up from the bed and covered his face with his hands, his breathing turning ragged.

"Why can't you just see that I'm nothing? Why can't you see that I'm just a broken, sad excuse for a man? Everyone I have ever had feelings for left me. They kicked me into the ground over and over again so I was left with even more scars. Why should I think this time will be any different? You've seen what I've done to women. You don't want me near you."

"Kane, you aren't like that anymore..."

"Just because I had enough confidence to unmask doesn't mean that the monster is gone. That is a part of me that will never cease to exist. I'm fucked up, Stephanie. You don't need someone like me in your life, constantly dealing with insecurities, constantly needing reassurance. Hell, I'm sure you agree, after a sub-par performance last night-"

"Kane please! Please stop saying these things. None of them are true. You aren't a monster; you are a human being. You are a man with a heart, with feelings, and you need to see that. I can see that, and I want to make sure that you can, too. Last night was amazing, you were perfect. You were so gentle and patient, something Hunter never was. You provided me comfort and there is nothing you can say or think that will convince me otherwise."

Standing there panting from the emotional outburst, Kane was silenced by her words. Sure, he had heard all of these things a million times, but something was different when Stephanie said them to him. She sounded sincere, she sounded like she actually did care. Moving to sit back on the bed, he heard shuffling, and a few seconds later he felt Stephanie wrap herself and the sheets around him, hugging him. Succumbing to her warm embrace, he allowed her to lay him down, and he felt her laying her head on his shoulder.

"I'm not going to treat you like they did, Kane. I respect you too much to do that."

He nodded curtly, choosing to remain silent after her statement. The couple laid there in bed for a while, Kane allowing everything to absorb into his mind. For a while he thought that Stephanie was asleep, but he felt her fingertips tracing his abs. Mustering up enough courage, he softly spoke out, "Do you know why I gave you my mask?"

She looked up, "No, I just thought that you found it in your best interest to side with us."

Quickly looking away, she knew how much her and Hunter had taken advantage of him. From forcing him to go out there every night and humiliate himself and forcing him to be their little puppet. She found it unbelievably cowardly and sad that she stooped that low to a man that was consistently loyal and did whatever was asked of him regardless.

He smiled weakly after hearing her answer. Taking a second, he eventually spoke, "I gave you my mask because I trusted you. I told you that the demon was yours to unleash because I knew you would take good care of him. Stephanie that mask isn't just a mask. It's a part of who I am, and for as long as I've been here, nobody has ever had the privilege of having my mask in their possession... That was, until something clicked in me, and it made more and more sense to go to you, and I knew I could trust you. So far, you haven't let me down."

Stephanie was feeling all sorts of emotions coursing through her. She never knew why Kane did what he did, but now she did, and she knew it in her heart that she would stop at nothing to continue to make him proud and trust her.

Kane lay there, his hand stroking Stephanie's hair absent-mindedly. He knew both of them had to get the day started for the trip to the Smackdown tapings later tonight, but he felt so content just staying in bed with her. For once in his life, he finally felt at peace.


	21. Chapter 20

The ride to the arena was spent in comfortable silence while Stephanie sat beside Kane watching the highway pass by. Truth be told she really didn't know what to say at this point after what transpired between them the night before. They had already spoken about it earlier anyway, there was nothing left to say, right?

"Are you okay, Stephanie?" Kane's voice broke her out of her reverie, shifting her attention to him. Looking at him, she saw he was relaxed against the seat and his eyes were set on the road ahead of them. Taking a second to study him, she noticed that he didn't look as grouchy as usual. To be honest, she had been noticing how much more elated he had become these past few months. She couldn't think of a time he was ever in a good more for more than a few hours.

Realizing he was still waiting for her response, she quickly blurted out, "Of course, why wouldn't I be?"

He chuckled softly, "You've been pretty quiet after we left… and you keep looking at me."

A blush tinted her cheeks, had she really been that preoccupied with her thoughts she wasn't even aware of what she was doing?

"Oh… I'm sorry. There's just a lot on my mind."

He quieted down almost immediately. Was she having second thoughts? He turned to look at her and saw that she had gone back to looking out of the window. Sighing, he reached over to her side and grasped her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. Bringing her hand up, he placed a kiss to the back of it and linked his fingers with hers, getting her attention again. The two lapsed back into silence as the arena drew nearer.

Xxx

Walking through the busy, crowded hallways of the arena, Kane tugged along his and Stephanie's luggage towards their "office". Office didn't mean much as it was just an enhanced locker room, but it was much better than being stuck with a ton of other wrestlers in the shared one. Glancing around, he noticed a lot of extras and stagehands nodding in his direction. Assuming it was from him being the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, he flashed each of them a smile before making his way into the room reserved for him and Stephanie.

Setting the bags down, he wondered where Stephanie had run off to. He knew that she was incredibly behind with other projects and he figured that she spent enough time focusing on him that now she could get to work on everything else. Tugging the small pack off his shoulders, he let it hit the desk and settle. Opening it up, shining diamonds and gold reached his eyes as the belt glittered in the light. A smile reached his lips as he took it out of the bag and held it in front of him. He stared at the nameplates that had his name and small design on it, and his smile grew.

"That looks great on you, you know."

He turned hearing Stephanie's voice coming from behind him, "You think so? Maybe it would look better if I had the mask."

A laugh reached his ears, "I don't think so. You proved that you don't need to mask to be on top."

He sighed softly, mulling over her response. Walking over to where she sat, he dropped down beside her, placing the belt between them.

"It just feels weird holding gold without the comfort of the mask. The last time I held this belt was almost twenty years ago, and things were so different back then. Hell, I didn't even have the belt for a day-"

His voice drifted off when a small hand touched his shoulder, "You're in a much better place now, Kane. You earned this belt through everything you have put yourself through over the last twenty years. I'm here to make sure that you keep that belt as long as possible… plus you look good wearing it, but that's just me saying that."

Feeling his cheeks heat up, he glanced down at the belt resting between them. While there was a part of him that was still wary about this, he knew that deep down this really was something he earned, and he was going to be damned if he kept sitting around thinking about all the 'what-ifs'.

Turning back to face her, he smiled, "You're right. Everything you said was right. I need to stop doubting myself and start stepping up to prove to everyone that me winning this belt wasn't a fluke."

Returning his smile, Stephanie felt so much better seeing that his confidence kept growing the longer he held the belt. Leaning forward, she kissed him before wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him.

"If I didn't think you couldn't handle this, I wouldn't have pushed so hard for this to happen."

"I know. If we're being honest, you are the only person who has had confidence in me and truly shown it. Not many people have really done that for me, and it means a lot."

Hearing Kane say that broke Stephanie's heart. She could recall all the times when Seth and Hunter spoke down to him. Even years and years ago she knew that not many people ever believed in him. Well, she was glad she could be the one person to give him that extra boost.

Breaking away from the embrace, Kane checked the time, "The show starts soon. I have to visit with the trainer to see if I'm alright to wrestle tonight. My back still isn't 100%..." Feeling his cheeks heating up again, he mumbled out, "and last night didn't really make it any better."

Upon entering the trainer's room, the doctor greeted both of them before bringing Kane over to the table for him to sit on. Taking a seat in the corner, Stephanie watched Kane strip himself of his jacket and shirt. Trying not to stare too long, she found it difficult to stop when the doctor had him flexing and moving around. Getting lost in her own fantasies, she suddenly gasped when he turned and she saw his large, blackish-purple bruise that spread across his entire lower back.

Listening in on their conversation, she overheard Kane mumbling, "I need to compete tonight. I hold the title, I need to prove that a little bruise isn't going to stop me."

"Sir, not only do you still feel incredibly sore, but there's no way I can clear you to wrestle tonight, especially with how enflamed and irritated this is. I'm giving you the night off to recuperate. You should be fine this coming Monday."

An irritated huff left Kane's mouth as he pulled back on his shirt. He knew that he was in no shape to compete, but a part of him refused to want to sit back when he should be out there defending the championship. He watched as the doctor spoke with Stephanie before heading off, and he saw her shift back towards him. Hopping down off the table, he approached Stephanie, a frown etched on his features.

"Can you believe the nerve of that guy? What does he know about how I'm feeling?"

Stephanie heard the frustration in Kane's voice, and she felt bad hearing him and seeing him like this. Looping her arm with his, she tugged on it until he began walking beside her back to their office. Stephanie didn't know what to say to make him feel any better, so she remained quiet on their way back until Kane spoke again, "I'm going to sit out for Seth's match tonight. I can't sit backstage doing nothing."

A smile reached her lips upon hearing a sudden determination in his voice. Tightening her arm in his, she led them into the office until he was seated on the couch.

"Well, then let us get you all ready for tonight."

Xxx

Holding Stephanie's hand in his, Kane waited for his music to begin before heading onto the ramp. As he heard it, he led her through the curtain and onto the ramp and immediately was met with a chorus of loud cheering from the crowd. While his pyro blocked it out at first, he could see signs with his name on them throughout the crowd as he walked down by the ring. Helping Stephanie into the ring, he walked with her to the middle of the ring and held the belt up, hearing an increase in the cheers from the audience.

The cheers didn't last long as almost immediately Seth Rollins' music began playing throughout the arena, and the majority of the crowd turned as they heard him speaking, "Cut the music. Cut it out!"

Kane watched as Seth appeared shortly after, with J&J Security flanking him. He noticed both smaller men still looking beat up after his brutal assault the week before. Feeling a twinge of remorse, he quickly stopped himself from feeling worse for going after them. After all, they got in his way, and he wasn't going to lose that night. Feeling a soft touch on his arm, he watched Stephanie bring a mic up to her mouth,

"Seth I'm surprised you're actually here tonight. Shouldn't you be tending to Hunter's wounds? Shouldn't you be waiting on your knees to serve him?"

Kane's eyes grew wide in surprise and amusement at the look on Seth's face. He knew Stephanie could go low, but he didn't know how low.

Seth's cackle brought the attention back to him, "I don't know Stephanie, weren't you the one on your knees for him for other reasons?"

The crowd erupted in 'oooohs' and other nonsensical noise. Sensing Stephanie's embarrassment, Kane placed a hand on her shoulder and took the mic from her, anger rising inside of him.

"Gee, Seth, those are some awfully big words coming from a man with a _something_ so small…"

Not being able to help himself, Kane laughed seeing Seth's face turn an ungodly shade of red as he tossed the mic away and began stomping down towards him and Stephanie. Taking Stephanie's hand, he quickly led her out of the ring before anything could transpire between them. Pushing her behind him, he braced himself for one of them to go after him, but the sound of Dolph Ziggler's music made Seth focus on him instead.

Taking a seat beside the commentator's table, Kane glanced at Stephanie, seeing she was transfixed on the rings on her fingers. Laying a hand on top of hers, she eventually looked over at him. Giving her a smile, he leaned over to her, "Are you alright? Don't worry about what Seth said."

She nodded in confirmation before returning his smile, putting him and herself at ease. After spending all of this time with him, she only now realized how good he treated her. She wondered if this was the real man he was always supposed to be, but never had a chance to. She wasn't about to find out his wrath if she was wrong about him, though.

Kane sat there watching the match until he felt something poke his arm. Turning in the chair, he saw one of the commentator's handing him a headset. Sliding closer to them, he took it and set it on his head so he could hear them.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Kane has decided to join us. So, Kane, what is it like holding the gold again, after almost twenty years?"

"Quite frankly, it's an unexplainable feeling. I never thought I would be holding the gold again, but now that I am, I guarantee you and everyone else that this will be a reign nobody will forget."

"What's it like having Stephanie McMahon in your corner? You two seem to have gotten very close, very fast. We take it things with Triple H didn't work out?"

Sighing softly, Kane's eyes flicked back to the match, seeing Seth was being pummeled into the ground.

"All I can say about that is that Stephanie is safe with me. After what Hunter did to her at TLC, there's nothing he can do to fix an already broken relationship."

"Kane, do you think that Stephanie is doing this just so she can turn on you when Triple H returns? I mean, they were the power couple that has taken charge time and time again. You can't think that she can move on this fast –"

Dropping the headset onto the desk, Kane shot up out of his chair, staring down the three now pale faced men beside him. Growling lowly, he locked eyes with the man who decided to say those things to him. Not paying attention to what was going on in the ring, he didn't even hear Seth getting the pinfall, or Stephanie telling him to stop. Grabbing the man by the collar of his shirt, he easily yanked him up to his feet, staring him in the eyes.

Lowering his voice, he said to the quivering man, "Say those things to me again, and we'll see how your insides look wrapped around your throat."

As he went to drop the man, he heard an uprising in the noise of the crowd and as he looked to his left, he saw a flying Seth Rollins coming his way. Before he had time to react, the smaller man collided with him, sending him tumbling into the barricade. Kane grunted in pain as his back collided with the barricade, but had no time to recover because of the flurry of punches coming from Seth. Shoving the man off of him, he tried to back off but to no avail. Seth relentlessly went after him until he was brought to his knees. Suddenly, he felt a jolt of pain go through his head from Seth's boot. Crumpling onto the ground, he watched through hazy, lidded eyes Seth tearing apart the table until there was nothing left on it. Trying to get up and get away, Kane gasped when a monitor was thrown against his back, and he was forcefully pulled up by Joey, Jamie and Seth and shoved onto the table. Knowing that he was going to get curb stomped, he braced for impact but it never came. There was an eruption of cheers when he saw a flurry of blonde hair rush past him and jump on Seth. The distraction prompted him to slide off of the table and limp his way to where Stephanie was.

Falling into her, he felt her hand on his abdomen, supporting him. His free hand took the belt from her outstretched arm and they slowly walked up the ramp. Glancing up at the titantron, Kane watched as Ziggler was curb stomped into the table after being held down by Joey and Jamie. Stopping, he continued to watch as Seth stood atop the mess and pointed his way.


End file.
